TJiRin.TOK.IAL  GOVERNORS 
OH  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 


DWIGHT  G.  MCCARTY 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
AT   LOS  ANGELES 


r— 


GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 


THE 

TERRITORIAL  GOVERNORS 

OF    THE 

OLD  NORTHWEST 


A  STUDY  IN  TERRITORIAL  ADMINISTRATION 


BY 

DWIGHT  G.  MCCARTY 


PUBLISHED  AT  IOWA  CITY  IOWA  IN  1910  BY 
THE    STATE    HISTORICAL   SOCIETY   OF   IOWA 


V «*'•?*.'  -'.  ,t  •)<>>.1    '  ••.    •:     ; 
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•«        >'          '.       •     ^          «         '        •>»'««..    y«    . 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

As  a  geographical  area  the  Iowa  country  be- 
came a  part  of  the  United  States  through  the 
purchase  of  the  Province  of  Louisiana  in  1803 : 
and  so  territorial  descent  is  traced  through  the 
District  of  Louisiana,  the  Territory  of  Louisiana, 
and  the  Territory  of  Missouri. 

On  the  other  hand  the  political  inheritances 
of  Iowa,  which  are  Anglo-American,  were  trans- 
mitted through  the  Territories  of  the  Old  North- 
west —  especially  the  Northwest  Territory,  the 
Indiana  Territory,  the  Territory  of  Mich- 

gj 

8  igan,  and  the  original  Territory  of  Wisconsin. 

t^ 

I  Thus  the  study  of  the  evolution  of  the  govern- 
ment and  administration  of  these  Territories 
forms  a  logical  introduction  to  the  constitutional 
and  political  history  of  Iowa.  And  it  is  from 
this  viewpoint  that  The  State  Historical  Society 
of  Iowa  has  undertaken  to  publish  a  book  on  the 
Territorial  Governors  of  the  Old  Northwest. 

As  worked  out  by  Mr.  McCarty  under  the 
direction  of  The  State  Historical  Society  of 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 


Iowa,  this  volume  is  neither  a  source  book  nor  a 
book  of  biography,  but  a  brief  outline  of  the  de- 
velopment of  Territorial  government  and  admin- 
istration in  the  Old  Northwest. 

Since  a  volume  on  Henry  Dodge  is  being 
prepared  for  the  IOWA  BIOGRAPHICAL  SERIES, 
Chapter  X  of  this  book  on  Governors  Dodge  and 
Doty  and  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin  has  been 
curtailed  by  the  author.  The  government  and 
administration  of  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin 
will  receive  adequate  treatment  in  the  book  on 
Henry  Dodge. 

BENJ.  F.  SHAMBAUGH 

OFFICE  OF  THE  SUPERINTENDENT  AND  EDITOR 
THE  STATE  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY  OF  IOWA 
IOWA  CITY    1910 


AUTHOR'S  PEEFACE 

The  Old  Northwest  occupies  a  peculiar  position 
in  American  history.  Eich  in  the  traditions  of  the 
past,  when  nations  struggled  for  supremacy  along 
its  borders,  it  was  left  at  the  feet  of  the  original 
thirteen  States  by  the  receding  waves  of  the  Eevolu- 
tion  —  a  vast  wilderness  of  boundless  resources, 
waiting  for  the  magic  touch  of  civilization.  The 
original  thirteen  States  were  then  just  beginning  to 
round  out  into  a  unified  National  life.  This  life 
was  tentative  and  uncertain  at  first;  but  after  the 
critical  period  was  passed  it  burst  out  of  its  old 
confines  and  spread  over  the  western  country  with 
a  joyous  abandon  that  threatened  to  outstrip  the 
forms  and  traditions  of  the  old  regime. 

It  was  an  eminently  practical  evolution  that 
within  a  few  decades  transformed  the  wilderness  of 
the  Old  Northwest  into  the  populous  and  flourishing 
States  of  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  and 
Wisconsin.  The  genesis  and  early  development  of 
the  Northwest  Territory  are,  therefore,  strategic 
points  from  which  a  correct  study  of  western  Amer- 
ican institutions  and  their  growth  must  of  necessity 


8         GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

begin.  Nearly  all  of  the  States  of  the  West  have 
had  to  pass  through  a  preparation  for  statehood  — 
a  tutelage  more  or  less  rigorous,  depending  upon 
local  conditions  and  the  rapidity  of  advancement. 
Many  characteristic  features  of  our  present  systems 
of  State  government  are  the  product  of  Territorial 
conditions. 

The  undeveloped  country  stretching  westward 
from  the  Alleghanies  was  like  an  ambitious  and 
headstrong  child,  and  needed  the  guidance  of  a 
paternal  hand  during  its  adolescence.  It  is  this 
fact  that  has  given  a  distinctive  character  to  the 
form  of  Territorial  government.  A  strong  Gov- 
ernor, with  plenary  powers  and  no  responsibility 
except  to  the  National  government  from  which  he 
receives  his  appointment,  has  been  the  center  and 
mainstay  of  Territorial  government  in  the  United 
States.  A  study  of  the  governments  of  the  various 
Territories  in  the  Old  Northwest  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  Governors  will  therefore  shed  light  upon 
the  influences  which  moulded  the  character  and 
destiny  of  Territories  and  Commonwealths. 

It  is  the  purpose  of  the  pages  that  follow  to 
present  an  outline  history  of  Territorial  government 
in  the  Old  Northwest,  from  the  time  of  American 
acquisition  down  to  the  admission  of  Wisconsin  into 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE 


the  Union  as  a  State  in  1848,  as  revealed  especially 
in  the  activities  of  the  Territorial  Governors.  The 
first  two  chapters  deal  with  early  conditions  in  the 
Old  Northwest,  and  with  the  first  attempts  at  gov- 
ernment. The  third  and  fourth  chapters  consist 
respectively  of  an  analysis  of  the  main  provisions  of 
the  Ordinance  of  1787,  and  of  a  statement  of  the 
powers,  functions,  and  importance  of  the  Territorial 
Governor.  The  remaining  chapters  constitute  a 
comparative  study  of  the  forms  and  processes  of 
administration  as  actually  worked  out  in  the  orig- 
inal Northwest  Territory  and  in  the  Territories  of 
Indiana,  Illinois,  Michigan,  and  Wisconsin. 

Throughout,  the  object  has  been  to  characterize 
rather  than  to  present  a  detailed  history  —  to  indi- 
cate the  real  forces  at  work  in  the  beginnings  of 
Territorial  government  and  to  point  out  the  impor- 
tant part  played  by  the  Governor. 

The  material  for  these  pages  has  been  gathered 
largely  from  original  sources.  Notes  and  references 
to  both  original  and  secondary  sources  have  been 
liberally  employed,  not  only  to  indicate  the  authority 
for  statements  of  fact  but  also  to  guide  the  reader 
who  may  desire  to  make  further  investigations  into 
subjects  which  necessarily  receive  little  more  than 
mention  in  the  present  volume. 


10        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

It  has  been  some  nine  years  since  this  mono- 
graph was  begun  —  most  of  the  work  having  been 
done  either  while  the  author  was  a  student  at  Har- 
vard University  or  during  vacations  when  there  was 
opportunity  to  visit  the  various  archives  where  the 
rich  collections  of  sources  for  western  history  are  to 
be  found.  In  a  somewhat  abridged  form  the  study 
was  originally  presented  as  a  master's  thesis  at 
Iowa  College,  Grinnell,  Iowa,  in  1904.  Since  that 
time  the  manuscript  has  been  enlarged  and  revised ; 
but  the  exactions  of  a  busy  law  practice  and  the 
burden  of  other  duties  have  delayed  its  completion. 

In  this  connection  I  desire  to  express  my  indebt- 
edness to  The  State  Historical  Society  of  Iowa  which 
has  made  possible  the  publication  of  the  book  at  this 
time;  and  especially  am  I  under  obligation  to  Pro- 
fessor Benj.  F.  Shambaugh,  Superintendent  and 
Editor,  for  his  friendly  personal  interest,  his  critical 
editing  of  the  manuscript,  and  his  aid  in  seeing  the 
volume  through  the  press.  Mr.  Dan  E.  Clark,  Re- 
search Assistant  in  The  State  Historical  Society  of 
Iowa,  has  rendered  very  valuable  assistance  in  veri- 
fying quotations  and  references  and  in  securing 
uniformity  in  the  notes.  My  grateful  acknowledg- 
ments for  helpful  suggestions  and  encouragement 
are  also  due  to  Professor  Allen  Johnson,  Professor 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE  11 

Jesse  Macy,  Professor  Albert  Bushnell  Hart,  Pro- 
fessor Edward  Charming,  Professor  Frederick  J. 
Turner,  and  to  others  who  have  generously  aided  me 
from  time  to  time. 

DWIGHT   G.   McCABTY 

EMMET  SBUEG,  IOWA 


CONTENTS 

I.     THE  OLD  NORTHWEST  .        .  .          15 

II.    EAELY  ATTEMPTS  AT  GOVERNMENT      .          24 

III.  THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787    ...          31 

IV.  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  TERRITO- 

RIAL EXECUTIVE        ....          39 

V.     GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  AND  THE  NORTH- 
WEST TERRITORY      ....          48 

VI.     GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  THE  INDIANA 

TERRITORY 75 

VII.     GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  THE  ILLINOIS 

TERRITORY 92 

VIII.     GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  THE  TERRITORY 

OF  MICHIGAN 118 

IX.     GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  AND  THE 

TERRITORY  OF  MICHIGAN  .        .        .        127 

X.     GOVERNORS  DODGE  AND  DOTY  AND  THE 

TERRITORY  OF  WISCONSIN        .        .        144 

NOTES  AND  REFERENCES        .        .        .        159 
INDEX  .  191 


THE  OLD  NOBTHWEST 

To  the  thirteen  colonies  clustered  on  the  Atlantic 
seaboard  the  " western  country"  was  a  wild,  unex- 
plored region  —  a  vague  margin  on  a  well-known  map. 
But  this  country,  later  known  as  the  Old  Northwest, 
had  a  physiographic  unity  of  its  own.  Comprising 
the  region  northwest  of  the  River  Ohio,  it  was 
bounded  on  the  East  by  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  on 
the  West  by  the  Mississippi  Eiver,  and  on  the  North 
it  found  its  natural  limitations  in  the  great  lake  re- 
gion. Thus  it  embraced  a  beautiful  portion  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley,  with  moderate  temperature, 
abundant  rainfall,  fertile  soil  well  adapted  for  agri- 
culture, and  rich  mineral  resources.  It  was  a  level 
plain  covered  with  luxurious  forests  and  broad 
prairies  of  waving  grass,  abounding  in  game. 

The  Great  Lakes  at  the  north,  the  large  rivers 
that  formed  its  boundaries,  and  the  numerous  trib- 
utary streams  that  flowed  through  this  country  were 
admirable  water  highways  which  were  of  the  great- 
est assistance  to  the  pioneer  in  his  long  journey 
through  the  wilderness.  They  also  served  as  a  much 
needed  means  of  communication  and  formed  an 
avenue  for  the  transportation  of  supplies.  But 
they  likewise  furnished  a  ready  approach  for  wily 


16        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

enemies  and  made  the  frontier,  always  exposed  at 
best,  doubly  difficult  to  defend. 

The  colonists,  who  by  persistent  industry  had 
built  up  permanent  settlements  and  prosperous 
estates  on  the  coast,  were  slow  to  take  possession  of 
this  rich  western  country.  In  fact  the  English  did 
not  succeed  in  gaining  a  permanent  foothold  on  the 
shores  of  the  Atlantic  until  more  than  a  hundred 
years  after  the  discoveries  of  Columbus;  and  the 
Revolution  found  their  settlements  still  practically 
confined  to  the  seaward  side  of  the  Alleghanies.  On 
the  other  hand,  before  the  founding  of  Jamestown 
or  the  landing  of  the  Pilgrims,  the  Spaniards  had 
penetrated  far  into  the  heart  of  the  continent  and 
had  made  scattered  settlements  in  Central  America 
and  Florida ;  while  the  French  had  possessed  them- 
selves of  Canada  before  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century  and  were  exploring,  trapping,  and  settling 
in  the  upper  Mississippi  Valley. 

The  English  were  slow  to  move  westward;  but 
their  settlements  were  of  a  permanent  nature.  The 
French,  on  the  other  hand,  explored  much,  traded 
with  the  Indians,  and  settled  little. 

From  the  first  France  tenaciously  maintained 
her  claim  to  the  western  territory.  She  built  a  chain 
of  forts  connecting  the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  Mis- 
sissippi, made  alliances  with  the  neighboring  Indian 
tribes,  and  sought  in  every  way  to  protect  her  ex- 
tended frontier  possessions.  England,  becoming 
alive  to  the  situation,  enlisted  the  support  of  her 


THE  OLD  NORTHWEST  17 

growing  colonies  in  the  endeavor  to  humble  her 
haughty  rival.  The  wars  waged  on  European  soil 
between  the  mother  countries  found  their  counter- 
parts in  fierce  border  warfare  in  the  New  World. 
The  English  gained  little  ground  until  the  capture 
of  Fort  Duquesne  in  1758  gave  them  the  key  to  the 
Mississippi  region,  and  the  victory  of  Wolfe  on  the 
Plains  of  Abraham  in  1759  made  an  entering  wedge 
into  Canada.1 

This  continuous  strife  was  finally  terminated  by 
the  Treaty  of  Paris  in  1763,  by  which  France  ceded 
to  Great  Britain  all  Canada  and  all  of  her  territory 
east  of  the  Mississippi  Eiver  —  with  the  exception  of 
New  Orleans  and  a  small  strip  of  adjacent  land. 
Spain,  the  luckless  ally  of  France  in  this  struggle, 
was  forced  to  give  up  Florida  to  the  conqueror.  By 
a  secret  treaty  in  November  of  the  preceding  year 
France  had  transferred  to  Spain  New  Orleans  and 
all  of  her  possessions  west  of  the  Mississippi  known 
as  Louisiana.2 

France  having  been  eliminated  from  North 
America,  Great  Britain  became  the  dominating 
power,  with  Spain  in  control  across  the  Mississippi. 
England  had  taken  her  place  as  a  great  world  power 
and  was  now  undergoing  governmental  transforma- 
tions which  began  to  be  manifested  in  her  colonial 
policy.  The  colonies  were  to  be  ruled  with  a  rod  of 
iron,  and  coercive  measures  which  foreshadowed  the 
Revolution  were  inaugurated. 

The  King's  Proclamation  of  1763  established 


18        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

boundaries  and  governments  in  the  newly  acquired 
territory,  and  forbade  the  granting  of  any  land  "be- 
yond the  heads  or  sources  of  any  of  the  rivers  which 
fall  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean  from  the  west  or  north- 
west".3 Any  such  exclusive  policy  that  consigned 
the  region  west  of  the  Alleghanies  to  the  Indians  was 
doomed  to  failure,  for  the  colonists  were  already  be- 
ginning to  turn  toward  the  West.  Several  of  the 
colonies,  moreover,  claimed  parts  of  this  region  by 
virtue  of  old  grants  from  the  Crown.  Continual 
repression  of  the  colonies  only  nursed  rebellion ;  and 
the  inevitable  result  was  the  Eevolutionary  "War. 
The  valiant  fight  of  the  colonists  for  independence 
is  a  matter  of  history,  and  the  part  that  the  sturdy 
backwoodsmen  played  has  often  been  told.  Under 
the  leadership  of  George  Rogers  Clark  the  fearless 
band  of  "Kentucky  Long  Knives"  conquered  the 
wilderness  territory  and  saved  the  West  for  the 
Americans.4 

The  fact  that  the  Americans  had  conquered  and 
successfully  held  possession  of  this  vast  territory 
enabled  the  commissioners  to  name  the  Mississippi 
as  the  western  boundary  of  the  United  States  when 
the  treaty  of  peace  was  at  last  signed  in  1783.  It  was 
the  permanent  acquisition  of  the  territory  northwest 
of  the  Eiver  Ohio  that  prepared  the  way  for  the 
great  westward  movement. 

Nor  was  this  constant  warring  of  nationalities 
without  an  important  influence  upon  the  history  of 
the  Northwest.  France  was  there  first  and  stamped 


THE  OLD  NORTHWEST  19 

her  policy  and  personality  so  firmly  on  the  region 
that  they  were  continually  cropping  out  to  harass 
the  later  American  advance.  It  has  been  suggested 
that  it  was  the  encumbrances  inherited  from  the 
French  regime  that  retarded  the  development  of 
Michigan  and  Wisconsin  and  postponed  for  so  long 
their  final  assimilation  as  a  part  of  the  Union ;  while 
Ohio,  which  was  furthest  removed  from  these  early 
influences  and  more  directly  in  touch  with  the  Eng- 
lish Colonies,  was  from  the  first  essentially  Amer- 
ican.5 

Moreover,  the  Spaniards  were  constantly  in- 
triguing against  the  Americans,  striving  to  under- 
mine their  allegiance  and  gain  their  trade  and  ter- 
ritory. Their  tactics  are  well  illustrated  by  the 
attempts  to  induce  Kentucky  to  separate  from  the 
Union,  and  the  interference  with  western  trade  by 
controlling  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi  Eiver  and 
impeding  its  free  navigation.6 

The  English  also  maintained  a  policy  that  was 
at  all  times  inimical  to  the  progress  of  the  American 
settlement.  They  saw  a  rich  country  and  a  profit- 
able fur  trade  slipping  away  from  them,  and  they 
strove  to  strengthen  their  hold  on  the  land  by  making 
allies  of  the  Indian  tribes.7  Even  where  their  plans 
failed,  the  mistakes  and  abuses  of  their  often  incom- 
petent officers  in  dealing  with  the  Indians  produced 
a  stumbling  block  that  was  continually  cumbering 
the  path  of  the  later  pioneers.  The  Old  Northwest 
was  the  outpost  battlefield  of  the  Revolution;  and 


20        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

though  the  struggle  was  as  decisive  there  as  in  the 
colonies,  yet  the  influence  of  the  former  regime  lin- 
gered much  longer.  The  British  held  on  to  their 
frontier  posts  long  after  the  date  set  for  their  re- 
linquishment ;  and  even  after  they  had  retired  they 
continued  to  exercise  a  sinister  influence  from  across 
the  border  until  long  after  the  "War  of  1812.8 

But  more  formidable  than  European  intruders 
and  their  foreign  tendencies  was  the  dreaded  Indian. 
Accustomed  to  Nature's  abundance  and  contented 
only  when  roaming  unhampered  through  vast  areas 
where  he  might  hunt  and  trap  and  camp  as  he  chose, 
the  Indian  resisted  the  steady  advance  of  the  White 
Man.  With  savage  cunning  he  would  pounce  upon 
the  isolated  and  unsuspecting  settler,  murder  him 
and  his  family,  and  burn  his  cabin  to  the  ground. 
Eoving  bands  stole  horses  and  cattle  from  the  set- 
tlers and  committed  the  most  atrocious  depredations 
at  the  settlements  on  the  frontier.  When  on  the 
war  path  they  left  a  trail  of  blood  and  utter  desola- 
tion, and  spread  terror  throughout  the  region.  The 
Indians  were  indeed  the  most  persistent  and  dreaded 
foes  of  the  pioneers,  and  they  were  aided  and  en- 
couraged in  their  hostility  by  the  English  and  Span- 
ish along  the  borders. 

Constant  trouble  and  warfare  were  the  inevit- 
able result  of  these  conditions  in  the  Northwest  Ter- 
ritory, and  disturbances  of  one  form  or  another 
prevailed  throughout  the  whole  period  of  western 
settlement. 


THE  OLD  NORTHWEST  21 

In  the  manner  of  its  development  the  Old  North- 
west was  a  unit.  Though  there  were  naturally  local 
variations,  yet  in  its  general  trend  the  movement 
toward  settlement  in  the  Northwest  as  a  whole  dif- 
fered widely  from  that  of  the  country  south  of  the 
Ohio.  As  Mr.  Roosevelt  has  so  well  shown,  the 
Southwest  was  settled  by  the  individual  initiative  of 
the  backwoodsmen,  who  with  their  axes  and  long 
guns  forced  their  way  through  the  vast  wilderness, 
conquered  it  in  their  own  way,  and  constructed  their 
own  form  of  government  independent  of  the  parent 
State ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Northwest  was 
developed  by  the  Nation  as  a  whole  —  the  government 
troops  leading  the  way,  the  settler  following;  while 
the  form  of  government  was  prescribed  by  the  United 
States  from  the  beginning.9 

Moreover  the  presence  of  these  two  tendencies 
on  different  sides  of  the  Ohio  had  in  itself  an  im- 
portant influence  on  the  Northwest.  The  Southwest 
was  developed  first,  and  it  was  the  same  hardy  back- 
woodsmen from  Virginia  and  Kentucky  who  con- 
quered the  Northwest  and  thus  made  possible  its  set- 
tlement along  natural  lines.  The  first  settlers  were 
also  from  the  South,  and  the  greater  part  of  them 
were  widely  scattered  over  the  whole  region  —  few  of 
them  living  in  the  small  French  towns.10 

The  first  comers  were  mostly  adventurers  and 
squatters  who  persisted  in  putting  their  cabins  on 
the  Indian  lands  in  spite  of  the  vigilance  of  the 
troops.  But  as  soon  as  the  country  was  opened  up 


22        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

for  settlement  this  condition  of  affairs  was  modified 
by  an  infusion  of  new  immigration  from  New  Eng- 
land and  the  Middle  States.11 

Beginning  with  the  founding  of  Marietta  in  1788 
by  the  '  *  New  Pilgrims ' '  from  New  England  and  con- 
tinuing with  the  influx  of  settlers  from  Pennsylvania 
and  adjacent  States,  the  influence  of  the  National 
government  commenced  to  dominate  the  Northwest. 
The  spirit  of  western  democracy  was  larger  than 
sectional  influences,  and  it  slowly  but  surely  merged 
the  earlier  individualistic  tendencies  of  the  frontiers- 
man into  an  unconscious  compromise.  And,  as  it 
will  appear  later,  it  was  this  same  colonization  com- 
promise which,  under  the  guidance  of  the  Territorial 
Governor,  gave  rise  to  some  of  the  most  character- 
istic institutions  and  conditions  connected  with 
western  development. 

The  great  magnet  that  attracted  settlers  to  the 
Territory  was  land,  which  was  cheap  and  plenty. 
Moreover,  traders  and  squatters,  adventurers  and 
settlers  alike  were  willing  to  undergo  frontier  priva- 
tions in  order  to  secure  a  piece  of  land  which  they 
might  call  their  own.  They  traveled  long  distances 
and  through  vast  stretches  of  wilderness,  and  when 
they  settled  down  it  was  usually  with  their  nearest 
neighbor  a  long  way  off. 

These  characteristic  facts  and  conditions  of  the 
frontier  had  important  results.  They  gave  the  fron- 
tiersman a  broader  outlook  and  a  more  democratic 
spirit,  increased  his  self-confidence  and  individual 


THE  OLD  NORTHWEST  23 

initiative,  and  developed  rugged  persistence  of  char- 
acter. Economically  he  became  more  independent 
and  politically  more  democratic.  The  old  provincial- 
ism was  shaken  off  on  the  broad  prairies,  and  the 
free,  buoyant,  western  democracy  took  its  place. 

Such,  in  brief,  are  some  of  the  elements  that 
were  present  in  the  growth  and  development  of  the 
Old  Northwest.  The  pioneer  not  only  had  to  hew 
his  way  through  the  forest  and  break  the  prairie  sod, 
but  he  was  compelled  to  clear  away  the  blackened 
stumps  of  foreign  occupation  and  pull  out  the  weeds 
of  foreign  influence.  And  all  the  while  he  must 
stand  guard  to  protect  his  home  from  the  incursions 
of  an  ever  relentless  Indian  foe.  These  were  real 
obstacles  to  progress,  and  yet  they  were  the  means  of 
developing  character.  Strongly  impressed  upon  the 
Territory  at  the  very  beginning,  these  conditions  per- 
sisted throughout  its  history  as  a  vital  influence  upon 
its  life  and  spirit. 

Self-reliance,  strength,  energy,  and  a  broader 
vision  are  the  characteristic  traits  that  were  born  of 
the  taming  of  the  wilderness.  Undaunted  by  hard- 
ship or  danger,  the  sturdy  figure  of  the  pioneer 
stands  in  the  forefront,  typifying  the  nature  of  the 
development  of  the  West. 


II 

EARLY  ATTEMPTS  AT  GOVERNMENT 

The  early  government  of  the  Old  Northwest  as 
the  foundation  for  the  later  governmental  system  of 
the  Territories  is  worthy  of  careful  consideration. 
Such  government  as  there  was  any  necessity  for 
under  the  French  and  English  regimes  was  mainly 
paternal  and  military.  It  is  therefore  interesting 
to  trace  the  evolution  of  the  system  built  up  by  the 
Americans. 

Within  a  very  short  time  after  General  George 
Rogers  Clark  had  won  the  country  northwest  of  the 
Ohio,  the  State  of  Virginia,  on  the  basis  of  its  claim 
to  that  region,  passed  an  act  establishing  the 
"  County  of  Ilinois",  for  the  purpose  of  providing 
a  temporary  form  of  government  and  affording 
necessary  protection  to  the  inhabitants.  The  act 
was  to  remain  in  force  for  only  twelve  months.  It 
empowered  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  with  the  con- 
sent of  the  Council,  to  appoint  a  County  Lieutenant, 
who  in  turn  was  to  appoint  and  commission  such 
deputy  commanders  and  militia  officers  as  he  should 
think  necessary.  The  County  Lieutenant  had  a  gen- 
eral pardoning  power,  except  in  cases  of  murder  and 
treason,  when  appeal  was  taken  to  the  Governor  and 
legislature  respectively  of  Virginia.  He  was  re- 


EARLY  ATTEMPTS  AT  GOVERNMENT         25 

quired  to  call  the  citizens  of  the  various  districts  to- 
gether for  the  purpose  of  electing  persons  to  fill 
those  civil  offices  to  which  the  people  had  been  ac- 
customed. These  officials  were  to  exercise  jurisdic- 
tion and  conduct  themselves  in  conformity  with  the 
laws  then  existing  among  them,  and  were  to  ' '  be  paid 
for  their  services  in  the  same  manner  as  such  ex- 
penses" had  previously  been  ''borne,  levied,  and 
paid  in  that  county".12 

It  is  obvious  that  in  this  way  the  legislature 
hoped  to  avoid  many  of  the  difficulties  of  inaugurat- 
ing a  new  system,  and  to  make  the  transition  as 
smooth  as  possible.  "By  preserving  local  customs 
and  local  organs  of  government,  and  by  introducing 
few  new  officials,  it  was  hoped  that  the  change  could 
be  accomplished  with  little  disturbance."13  In 
order  to  more  effectually  protect  the  country,  the 
Governor  of  the  State  was  empowered  by  the  act  to 
raise  and  equip  five  hundred  men  to  garrison  the 
posts  in  Illinois. 

On  the  12th  day  of  December,  1778,  Patrick 
Henry,  then  Governor  of  Virginia,  appointed  Colonel 
John  Todd  as  the  County  Lieutenant.  He  wrote  an 
elaborate  and  statesmanlike  letter  of  instructions  on 
the  inside  of  the  front  cover  of  a  record-book,  which 
was  then  sent  on  its  long  journey  through  the  wilder- 
ness and  delivered  to  John  Todd  as  his  credentials.14 
It  was  in  this  book  that  Todd  later  made  the  entries 
which  give  us  our  chief  knowledge  of  the  administra- 
tion of  the  county  government. 


26        GOVEENOES  OF  THE  OLD  NOETHWEST 

John  Todd  was  born  in  Pennsylvania  in  1750. 
He  was  educated  in  a  classical  academy,  spent  some 
time  in  the  study  of  law,  and  had  considerable  mili- 
tary and  legislative  experience.15  He  was  not  un- 
familiar with  frontier  conditions,  and  seems  to 
have  possessed  the  energy  required  to  administer 
the  affairs  of  the  office  to  which  he  had  been  ap- 
pointed. 

It  was  in  the  spring  of  the  year  1779  that  Todd 
arrived  at  Kaskaskia  and  with  characteristic  vigor 
began  his  work.  Governor  Henry  had  written  a 
letter  to  George  Eogers  Clark,  who  continued  in  com- 
mand of  the  troops  in  Illinois,  apprising  him  of  the 
appointment  of  Todd  as  the  one  in  authority  in  civil 
affairs  and  requesting  his  cooperation  in  promoting 
the  best  interests  of  the  county.16  Clark  was  glad  to 
be  relieved  of  the  civil  duties  which,  in  the  unorgan- 
ized condition  of  the  country,  had  become  somewhat 
burdensome.17  The  people  were  called  together  and 
judges,18  a  sheriff,  clerks,  and  other  officers  were 
elected.  A  majority  of  these  officers,  judging  from 
their  names,  appear  to  have  been  Frenchmen.  Mil- 
itary commissions  were  also  issued,  and  among  the 
recipients  were  many  who  had  already  been  elected 
judges.19  The  lack  of  good  material  for  officers  is 
not  unusual  in  such  a  frontier  community,  and  so 
duplication  is  not  surprising  where  a  few  men  are 
apt  to  be  the  natural  leaders. 

The  new  government  seemed  to  work  smoothly 
enough  for  a  time.  The  presence  of  Clark  and  his 


EARLY  ATTEMPTS  AT  GOVERNMENT         27 

troops  kept  the  Indians  quiet,  and  there  was  little 
disturbance  to  make  active  interference  among  the 
settlers  necessary.  The  courts,  composed  of  easy- 
going Frenchmen  as  judges,  had  little  to  do  —  a 
condition  which  they  construed  as  meaning  that 
there  was  no  necessity  for  meeting.  Todd,  however, 
issued  an  order  requiring  them  to  hold  the  regular 
sessions ;  and  the  Record-Book  discloses  regular  meet- 
ings for  some  time  thereafter,  although  at  all  but 
four  of  them  no  business  except  adjournment  was 
transacted.20 

There  were,  nevertheless,  certain  conditions 
which  made  the  government  unstable.  The  scattered 
population  made  administration  difficult,  and  the 
dissatisfaction  with  the  innovation  of  self-govern- 
ment on  the  part  of  the  indifferent  French  population 
undermined  the  efficiency  of  the  system.  Hard  times, 
the  failure  of  crops,  the  depreciation  of  the  almost 
worthless  American  currency,  and  the  troubles  grow- 
ing out  of  the  disposition  of  the  public  lands,  all 
added  to  the  difficulties  of  the  situation.  Todd  tried 
his  best  to  overcome  them  and  did  succeed  in  some 
measure  in  mitigating  the  hardships,  especially  with 
regard  to  the  land  troubles.21  He  found  it  very  diffi- 
cult to  get  supplies  for  the  troops;  and  he  was 
finally  compelled  to  resort  to  forced  levies,22  which 
gave  rise  to  misunderstandings  between  the  civil  and 
military  authorities  and  bred  discontent  among  the 
inhabitants  until  in  the  end  there  was  open  antagon- 
ism.23 Under  such  conditions  it  was  impossible  to 


28        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

maintain  authority;  and  so,  late  in  the  fall  of  1779 
or  in  the  spring  of  1780,  Colonel  Todd  left  the  coun- 
try. 

It  would  be  unjust  to  attribute  to  John  Todd 
the  blame  for  the  unfortunate  situation.  It  was 
rather  the  inevitable  result  of  the  confused  and 
inharmonious  conditions  existing  in  the  county 
itself.  In  fact  one  of  the  militia  officers  who  was  the 
most  pronounced  in  his  denunciation  of  Todd,  some 
time  later  in  an  apologetic  letter,  admitted  that  he 
had  entirely  failed  to  appreciate  the  true  condition 
of  affairs.24  While  it  is  true  that  the  hardships  of 
the  people  were  very  great,  yet  it  is  probable  that 
much  of  the  criticism  of  Colonel  Todd  was  alto- 
gether unwarrantable. 

Colonel  George  Rogers  Clark  left  the  Illinois 
country  about  the  same  time,  and  there  is  some 
uncertainty  as  to  whether  Eichard  Winston  or  Thim- 
othe  Demunbrunt  was  the  deputy  and  lieutenant- 
commandant  left  in  charge  of  affairs.25  The  very 
uncertainty  on  this  point  is  an  indication  of  the 
confusion  existing  in  the  county.  The  feeling  be- 
tween the  military  and  civil  officers  became  still  more 
intense  and  they  hampered  each  other  at  every 
step.26  Thus  government  in  the  county  soon  became 
so  demoralized  and  impotent  that  it  was  openly  defied 
by  the  inhabitants.  The  Virginia  authorities,  dis- 
tracted by  important  events  at  home,  had  given  it 
little  support,  and  they  now  began  the  gradual  with- 
drawal of  the  troops.27 


EARLY  ATTEMPTS  AT  GOVERNMENT          29 

The  government  of  the  Illinois  County  as  pro- 
vided for  in  the  act  of  the  Virginia  legislature  ex- 
pired in  1781.28  The  commission  appointed  in  1783 
reported  that  the  French  inhabitants  were  not 
friendly  to  Virginia,  that  the  Indians  were  going 
over  to  the  British,  and  that  the  Illinois  County  was 
in  such  a  desperate  condition  that  stringent  measures 
must  immediately  be  taken  if  Virginia  expected  to 
retain  control.29  But  Virginia  did  nothing,  either 
because  of  the  difficulties  at  home,  or  the  expense,  or 
because  she  had  already  conditionally  ceded  her 
claim  on  this  region  to  the  United  States  govern- 
ment. 

The  lawlessness  in  the  frontier  country  at  this 
time  is  well  described  in  the  petition  of  Carbonneaux, 
the  Prothonotary  and  Notary  Public  for  the  Illinois 
settlements.  He  complained  that  "they  are  wholly 
without  law  or  government;  that  their  magistrates, 
from  indolence  or  sinister  views,  having  for  some 
time  been  relax  in  the  execution  of  their  office,  are 
now  altogether  without  authority ;  that  crime  of  the 
greatest  enormity  may  be  committed  with  impunity, 
and  a  man  be  murdered  in  his  own  house  &  no 
person  regard  it;  that  they  have  no  sheriff  nor 
prison;  and,  to  crown  the  general  confusion,  that 
many  people  have  made  large  purchases  of  three  or 
four  hundred  leagues,  and  are  endeavoring  to  have 
themselves  established  lords  of  the  soil  as  some  have 
done  in  Canada,  and  have  settlements  made  on  these 


30        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

purchases  composed  of  a  set  of  men  wholly  subser- 
vient to  their  views."30 

Thus  left  to  its  fate  and  torn  by  internal  dis- 
turbances it  is  not  strange  that  anarchy  prevailed 
in  the  Illinois  County.  The  temporary  government 
had  been  moderately  efficient  while  it  lasted,  although 
it  disclosed  the  difficulty  of  applying  complete  self- 
government  to  such  conditions.  The  test  had  also 
shown  the  possibilities  of  the  American  form  of 
government,  and  it  now  only  needed  persistent  asser- 
tion to  make  the  American  idea  dominate  the  West. 
It  was,  to  be  sure,  a  little  early  for  the  experiment, 
but  the  forces  were  gathering  in  a  new  quarter,  and 
in  a  very  short  time  the  strong  hand  of  the  National 
government  was  to  be  felt  in  the  country  northwest 
of  the  Ohio. 


Ill 

THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787 

The  necessity  for  some  sort  of  government  for 
the  unorganized  western  country  had  become  very 
urgent.  A  number  of  States,  including  Virginia, 
had  ceded  their  western  lands  to  the  United  States 
and  the  others  were  on  the  verge  of  doing  so.  Peti- 
tions in  great  numbers,  praying  for  relief  and  assist- 
ance, were  coming  in  to  Congress  from  both  French 
and  Americans  in  the  distracted  West.31  The  Con- 
gress of  the  Confederation  had  in  fact  made  attempts 
to  provide  a  form  of  government,  but  the  resulting 
measures  were  not  given  a  trial.32 

A  New  England  immigration  society,  called  the 
"Ohio  Company",  organized  in  1786  and  composed 
mostly  of  Revolutionary  soldiers  who  were  anxious 
to  settle  on  the  lands  west  of  the  Alleghanies,  pre- 
sented a  petition  to  Congress  and  sent  representa- 
tives to  plead  their  cause.33  This  petition  seems  to 
have  hastened  the  action  of  Congress,  and  to  a  cer- 
tain extent  it  may  have  affected  the  nature  of  the 
enactment  which  was  designated  to  guarantee  a  free 
and  stable  government  to  prospective  settlers  in  the 
West. 

And  so,  on  July  13,  1787,  while  the  Federal 
Constitutional  Convention  was  still  in  session  at 


32        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

Philadelphia,  the  Congress  of  the  Confederation 
passed  the  famous  Ordinance  of  1787,  which  was 
entitled  "An  Ordinance  for  the  Government  of  the 
Territory  of  the  United  States,  north-west  of  the 
river  Ohio."34  There  has  been  considerable  contro- 
versy as  to  the  authorship  of  this  Ordinance  and  as 
to  the  motives  which  prompted  its  enactment,35  but 
there  is  no  doubt  of  the  wisdom  of  its  provisions  or 
of  the  permanence  of  the  policy  it  inaugurated. 

In  general  tone  the  instrument  was  one  that 
would  inspire  confidence.  It  contained  six  l '  articles 
of  compact  between  the  original  states,  and  the 
people  and  states  in  the  said  territory",  in  the  nature 
of  a  Bill  of  Rights,  guaranteeing  civil  and  religious 
liberty  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  government  which  were  forever  to  ' '  remain 
unalterable,  unless  by  common  consent".  It  also 
prohibited  slavery  in  the  Territory,  encouraged  pub- 
lic education,  and  provided  for  the  establishment 
and  admission  into  the  Union  of  new  States  on  an 
equal  footing  with  the  older  Commonwealths.  More- 
over, the  Ordinance  contained  a  clear  and  workable 
system  of  law  on  the  descent  and  transfer  of  prop- 
erty, thus  firmly  establishing  once  for  all  one  of  the 
basic  elements  in  the  life  of  the  new  country. 

The  initial  stage  of  government  and  the  means 
of  administration  provided  by  the  Ordinance  were 
comparatively  simple.  There  was  to  be  a  Governor 
appointed  by  Congress  for  a  term  of  three  years, 
who  must  reside  in  the  district  which  he  was  to  gov- 


THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787  33 

ern  and  have  a  freehold  estate  of  one  thousand  acres 
of  land  therein  while  in  office.  A  Secretary  was  to 
be  chosen  by  Congress  for  a  term  of  four  years  with 
the  same  requirement  as  to  residence,  and  he  was 
to  have  a  freehold  estate  of  five  hundred  acres.  Fi- 
nally, Congress  was  to  appoint  three  Judges  to  hold 
office  during  good  behavior,  each  of  whom  was  to 
reside  in  the  district  and  have  a  freehold  estate  of 
five  hundred  acres.  It  was  provided  that  any  two 
of  the  Judges  should  constitute  a  court  having  com- 
mon law  jurisdiction. 

The  Governor  and  Judges  were  given  power  to 
adopt  such  laws  of  the  original  States  as  they 
thought  necessary,  and  these  laws  were  to  remain 
in  force  in  the  district  unless  disapproved  of  by 
Congress.  The  Governor  was  authorized  to  appoint 
magistrates  and  other  civil  officers  in  each  county  or 
township.  He  was  empowered  to  make  proper  pro- 
visions for  the  enforcement  of  the  laws,  and  to  lay 
out  parts  of  the  district  into  counties  and  townships 
from  time  to  time  as  circumstances  required.  He 
was  also  to  be  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  militia, 
and  to  appoint  and  commission  all  military  officers 
below  the  rank  of  general  officers,  the  latter  being 
commissioned  by  Congress.  Such  was  the  machinery 
provided  for  the  administration  of  the  first  stage  of 
Territorial  government. 

The  Ordinance  further  made  provision  for  an 
enlargement  of  this  "temporary"  government  to 
meet  the  demands  of  growth  and  settlement.  When 


there  were  five  thousand  free  male  inhabitants  of  full 
age  in  the  district,  the  Governor  was  to  call  an  elec- 
tion for  Eepresentatives  in  a  General  Assembly. 
Each  Representative  must  have  been  "a  citizen  of 
one  of  the  United  States  three  years ' '  and  a  resident 
of  the  district,  or  he  must  have  been  a  resident  of  the 
district  for  three  years.  Furthermore,  he  must  own 
in  fee  simple  two  hundred  acres  of  land  within  the 
district.  Representatives  were  to  hold  office  for  two 
years.  The  qualifications  for  electors  of  Represent- 
atives were  a  freehold  estate  of  fifty  acres,  previous 
citizenship  in  one  of  the  States,  and  residence  in  the 
district,  or  a  like  property  qualification  and  residence 
for  two  years  in  the  district. 

At  a  time  and  place  designated  by  the  Governor 
the  newly  elected  Representatives  were  to  meet  and 
nominate  ten  persons,  all  residents  of  the  district, 
five  of  whom  Congress  was  to  appoint  and  commis- 
sion as  members  of  a  Legislative  Council  to  hold 
office  for  five  years.  The  property  qualification  for 
members  of  the  Council  was  a  freehold  estate  of  five 
hundred  acres. 

The  Territorial  legislature  in  the  second  stage 
of  government,  therefore,  was  to  consist  of  the  Gov- 
ernor, the  Legislative  Council,  and  the  House  of 
Representatives;  and  it  was  invested  with  the  au- 
thority to  make  all  laws  necessary  for  the  good  gov- 
ernment of  the  Territory.  The  legislature  was  also 
entrusted  with  the  power  of  defining  and  regulating 
the  powers  and  duties  of  the  magistrates  and  other 


THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787  35 

civil  officers,  and  with  the  right  to  elect  a  Delegate 
who  should  represent  the  Territory  in  Congress. 
It  was  provided,  however,  that  all  bills,  having 
passed  by  a  majority  in  both  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives and  the  Council,  should  be  referred  to  the 
Governor,  and  that  without  his  assent  no  bill  should 
become  a  law.  The  power  to  convene,  prorogue, 
and  dissolve  the  legislature  was  vested  in  the  Gov- 
ernor. 

Such  is  a  brief  summary  of  the  main  provisions 
of  the  Ordinance  of  1787  —  with  special  emphasis  on 
those  provisions  which  throw  light  on  the  powers 
and  duties  of  the  Governor.  It  is  obvious  that  the 
first  stage  of  temporary  government  outlined  by  the 
Ordinance  was  a  simple  but  strongly  centralized  one. 
The  Governor  was  clearly  the  dominating  figure.  In 
the  second  stage  the  people  were  given  more  power ; 
for,  although  they  were  still  subject  to  special  laws 
passed  by  Congress  for  their  benefit,  it  was  a  distinct 
gain  to  be  allowed  to  elect  their  own  representatives 
who  were  empowered  to  enact  local  laws.  But  the 
Governor  still  retained  control  of  legislation  by 
means  of  the  veto,  and  he  remained  as  before  the 
chief  power  in  the  government. 

It  may  be  thought  peculiar  that  the  Ordinance 
gave  the  people  of  the  Territory  so  few  constitu- 
tional privileges.  All  the  civil  and  military  offices, 
even  township  and  county  offices,  were  filled  by  the 
Governor's  appointment.  The  election  of  Represent- 
atives, which  was  the  main  franchise  granted  the 


36        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

people,  lost  much  of  its  significance,  since  all  legisla- 
tion was  subject  to  the  Governor's  absolute  veto. 
Nor  had  the  people  any  real  power  to  act  independ- 
ently of  the  National  government,  since  all  Terri- 
torial laws  were  subject  to  the  approval  of  Congress. 
But  this  seeming  violation  of  recognized  constitu- 
tional principles  may  be  defended  on  the  ground  of 
public  policy.  "When  the  original  States  ceded  their 
western  lands  to  the  National  government  it  was 
with  the  understanding  that  these  lands  would  some 
day  be  carved  into  new  States ;  and  Congress  recog- 
nized the  benefit  of  such  valuable  acquisitions.  But 
in  the  uncertainties  of  the  pre-constitutional  period 
it  could  by  no  means  be  predicted  that  the  people  of 
the  rich  western  lands  beyond  the  Alleghanies  might 
not  decide  to  shift  for  themselves.  Hence  there  was 
need  not  only  for  a  strong  government,  but  for  one 
which,  by  contrast,  would  offer  many  inducements 
for  the  early  formation  of  States. 

But  it  must  be  remembered  that  while  the  Ordi- 
nance denied  the  inhabitants  of  the  Territory  certain 
rights  and  privileges  it  also  relieved  them  from 
certain  duties  and  obligations  and  conferred  upon 
them  certain  benefits  not  enjoyed  by  citizens  in  a 
State.  On  the  whole  the  early  settlers  desired  only 
freedom  and  protection.  They  were  content  to  build 
homes  in  the  wilderness,  unhampered  by  political 
obligations,  if  only  they  were  permitted  to  work  out 
their  destinies  in  their  own  way.  The  Ordinance 
was,  therefore,  peculiarly  well  adapted  to  frontier 


THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787  37 

conditions,  since  it  gave  the  settlers  great  freedom 
of  action  and  at  the  same  time  ensured  to  them  the 
largest  possible  measure  of  protection.  The  ex- 
penses of  the  Territorial  government  were  paid  out 
of  the  National  treasury,  as  were  also  the  cost  of 
negotiating  Indian  treaties,  the  expense  of  special 
commissions,  and  the  burden  of  maintaining  the 
regular  troops.36  Thus  the  denial  to  the  settlers  of 
the  right  to  participate  to  any  great  extent  in  the 
government  of  the  Territory  was  offset  by  freedom 
from  burdensome  taxes.  In  addition  to  these  facts 
the  citizens  of  the  Territory  were  to  a  certain  degree 
guaranteed  fair  treatment  from  the  fact  that  the 
officers  were  obliged  to  own  land  in  the  Territory  and 
consequently  had  a  vital  interest  in  its  welfare  and 
prosperity. 

Another  important  feature  of  the  government 
provided  by  the  Ordinance  was  that  it  combined  the 
two  elements  of  protection  and  of  preparation  for 
statehood.  The  framers  of  the  Ordinance  recog- 
nized the  necessity  for  a  course  of  preparation  for 
self-government  when  they  provided  for  the  second 
stage  of  Territorial  government.  Furthermore, 
statehood  was  held  up  before  the  people  of  the 
Territory  as  an  incentive  to  progress ;  and  they  were 
thus  assured  of  larger  measures  of  self-government 
as  rapidly  as  they  were  able  to  assume  such  respon- 
sibilities. 

The  Ordinance  expressly  provided  that  '  *  There 
shall  be  formed  in  the  said  territory,  not  less  than 


38        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

three,  nor  more  than  five  states ' ',  the  general  bound- 
aries of  which  were  designated.  And  it  was  stipu- 
lated that  whenever  the  free  inhabitants  of  any  of 
these  areas  numbered  sixty  thousand  they  might 
proceed  to  form  a  State  constitution  and  organize 
a  State  government.37  It  was  this  provision  for  the 
admission  of  new  States  on  an  equality  with  the 
original  Commonwealths  which  marks  the  Ordinance 
of  1787  as  peculiarly  unique  in  the  history  of  colonial 
government. 

Finally,  the  Ordinance  was  more  than  a  tempo- 
rary act  of  legislation.  For,  although  it  was  in  cer- 
tain respects  superseded  by  the  adoption  of  the 
Federal  Constitution,38  the  new  Congress  of  the 
United  States  in  1789  passed  an  act  giving  full  recog- 
nition to  the  Ordinance,  and  adapting  its  provisions 
to  the  new  Constitution.39  By  this  act  it  was  pro- 
vided that  the  Governor,  Secretary,  and  Judges  were 
to  be  appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  with  the  consent  of  the  Senate  —  instead  of 
by  Congress  as  before.  The  Secretary  was  empow- 
ered to  act  in  the  capacity  of  Governor  in  case  of  a 
vacancy  or  in  the  Governor's  absence.  Except  in 
these  merely  adaptive  details  the  Ordinance  re- 
mained unchanged.  It  was  a  measure  admirably 
suited  to  the  needs  of  a  new  and  growing  community, 
and  it  has  been  used  as  the  model  for  all  subsequent 
Territorial  governments  in  the  United  States. 


IV 

THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  TERRITORIAL 
EXECUTIVE 

The  type  of  Governor  provided  for  the  Territory 
by  the  Ordinance  of  1787  was  hardly  one  which  at 
first  thought  would  be  expected  from  the  American 
people.  Throughout  their  long  experience  as  colon- 
ists they  had  been  almost  continually  at  swords 
points  with  the  Provincial  Governors,  resisting  every 
attempted  exercise  of  arbitrary  power  and  by  means 
of  their  legislative  assemblies  gradually  acquiring 
more  and  more  authority  at  the  expense  of  the  royal 
executive.40  But  the  Anglo-Saxon  ideas  of  self-gov- 
ernment had  through  centuries  of  growth  attained  a 
stability  that  would  not  permit  of  the  overthrow  of 
the  Governor.  The  people  had  opposed  him  because 
of  the  oppressive  exercise  of  his  power  and  not  be- 
cause he  was  Governor.  With  adequate  checks  and 
balances  he  was  recognized  as  a  necessary  element 
in  any  system  of  government.  Consequently  the 
Governor,  as  embodying  many  of  the  characteristics 
of  his  colonial  prototype,  was  the  natural  head  for 
the  government  of  the  western  Territories. 

The  question  of  the  power  of  such  an  executive 
was  therefore  the  important  consideration;  and  the 
solution  was  influenced  by  a  variety  of  circumstances. 


40        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

As  has  been  pointed  out,  when  Congress  was  consid- 
ering a  form  of  government  for  the  western  country 
numerous  petitions  and  reports  revealed  only  too 
plainly  the  desperate  and  lawless  condition  of  the 
frontier.  There  was  no  restraint,  no  system  of  su- 
pervision. The  greater  part  of  the  country  was  an 
absolute  wilderness,  and  the  scattered  settlements 
were  the  prey  of  irresponsible  wanderers  and  Indian 
marauders.  Under  such  circumstances  ordinary 
prudence  dictated  the  creation  of  a  strong  govern- 
ment. 

In  the  second  place  experience  under  the  Articles 
of  Confederation  had  already  shown  the  dangers  and 
impotency  of  a  loose,  decentralized  form  of  govern- 
ment. The  members  of  the  Congress  of  the  Confed- 
eration were  in  a  position  to  realize  this  fact  most 
acutely ;  and  so,  it  is  not  difficult  to  understand  their 
preference  for  a  government  strongly  centralized 
and  able  to  act  as  well  as  to  advise. 

There  was,  moreover,  another  factor  inhering  in 
the  very  nature  of  the  area  over  which  the  new  gov- 
ernment was  to  operate.  The  western  country  was 
a  part  of  the  public  domain  which  belonged  to  the 
United  States.  Any  form  of  government  for  such 
National  territory  must  of  necessity  be  under  the 
supervision  of  the  National  government :  it  must  be 
a  branch  of  the  parent  stock  and  part  of  its  policy 
and  system.  Now  the  easiest  and  most  logical 
method  of  exerting  effective  control  over  such  a  de- 
pendency was  through  a  Governor  appointed  by  the 


THE  TERRITORIAL  EXECUTIVE  41 

National  government.  The  larger  the  powers  granted 
to  a  Governor  responsible  to  the  government  above, 
the  more  effective  the  supervision  over  the  depend- 
ency. Such  a  form  of  control  was  obviously  the  one 
best  fitted  to  the  undeveloped  western  country. 

Still  another  element  in  determining  the  result 
was  the  fact  that  these  western  lands  were  to  be 
settled  by  people  from  the  eastern  States.  The  set- 
tlers who  were  already  turning  their  eyes  westward 
wanted  assurance  that  there  would  be  a  strong  gov- 
ernment able  to  protect  them  in  their  efforts  to  found 
homes  in  the  western  wilds.  This  desire  is  well  il- 
lustrated in  the  petition  to  Congress  from  the  Ohio 
Company,  to  which  reference  has  already  been  made. 
The  importance  of  the  action  and  personal  solicita- 
tion on  the  part  of  this  company,  perhaps,  did  not 
have  as  direct  a  bearing  on  shaping  the  form  of  gov- 
ernment as  is  sometimes  claimed  for  it ;  for  the  var- 
ious earlier  acts  of  the  Congress  relating  to  the  West 
doubtless  suggested  many  of  the  essentials  in  the 
final  form  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787.  There  can  be 
little  doubt,  however,  but  that  the  desire  to  protect 
the  eastern  settlers  and  encourage  immigration  to  the 
West  influenced  the  Congress  of  the  Confederation 
in  drawing  up  the  mode  of  government.  The  anti- 
slavery  clause,  passed  with  the  aid  of  southern  men, 
shows  how  the  general  considerations  of  expediency 
outweighed  questions  of  detail. 

It  is,  of  course,  impossible  to  prove  that  any  of 
these  considerations  resulted  directly  in  the  form  of 


42        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

government  finally  adopted.  In  fact  it  was  the  cumu- 
lative effect  of  them  all  that  shaped  the  legislation. 
The  English  or  American  mind  has  never  found  it 
difficult  to  frame  a  plan  of  government;  and  the  ex- 
perience and  ability  of  the  members  of  the  Congress 
of  the  Confederation  were  fully  adequate  to  such  a 
task.  At  the  same  time  it  is  scarcely  possible  to 
escape  the  conclusion  that  these  peculiar  circum- 
stances were  largely  instrumental  in  shaping  a  plan 
of  government  so  strongly  centralized,  so  dominated 
by  one-man  power,  and  so  lacking  in  democratic  prin- 
ciples as  to  seem  repugnant  to  the  very  fundamental 
ideas  of  self-government  for  which  these  same  pa- 
triots had  but  lately  undergone  all  the  horrors  of  a 
revolutionary  war.  The  evolution  of  such  a  type  of 
Governor,  standing  at  the  head  of  such  a  govern- 
ment, can  only  be  explained  by  exceptional  circum- 
stances. Even  though  attached  to  a  constitutional 
government  and  safeguarded  by  a  Bill  of  Eights,  the 
fact  remains  that  by  the  Ordinance  the  Governor  was 
in  reality  constituted  the  government  and  the  repos- 
itory of  political  power.  The  wisdom  of  the  model 
as  adapted  to  the  conditions  under  which  it  was  to 
operate  is  now  unquestioned,  and  it  is  evident  that 
the  exigencies  of  the  situation  as  well  as  a  wise  fore- 
sight gave  rise  to  the  provisions  of  the  Ordinance  of 
1787. 

The  Governor  provided  by  the  Ordinance  was  to 
be  appointed  by  Congress,  and  was  to  hold  office  for 
three  years  unless  his  commission  was  sooner  re- 


THE  TERRITORIAL  EXECUTIVE  43 

voked  by  Congress.  Thus  the  Governor  derived  his 
authority  direct  from  the  Federal  government,  and 
he  was  directly  and  personally  responsible  to  it.  His 
commission  could  be  revoked  at  any  time,  and  hence 
there  was  an  effective  check  upon  his  actions.  After 
the  adapting  act  of  1789  the  appointment  was  made 
by  the  President  with  the  same  control  as  before,  and 
all  reports  to  the  government  were  made  to  the  Pres- 
ident or  to  his  heads  of  departments. 

Another  significant  provision  of  the  Ordinance 
was  that  the  Governor  should  reside  in  the  district 
and  have  a  freehold  estate  of  one  thousand  acres  of 
land  therein  while  in  the  exercise  of  his  office.  This 
was  a  very  reasonable  requirement — one  intended 
to  secure  permanence  in  office  and  to  reduce  the  prob- 
ability of  non-resident  adventurers  securing  a  sine- 
cure. It  also  tended  to  reduce  absenteeism  and  to 
inspire  confidence  in  the  office  because  the  incumbent 
had  an  actual  interest  in  the  country. 

No  stated  salary  for  the  Governor  was  stipulated 
in  the  Ordinance,  but  his  salary  was  soon  afterwards 
fixed  by  law  at  two  thousand  dollars  per  year.41  The 
law  expressly  provided  that  this  amount  should  in- 
clude compensation  "for  discharging  the  duties  of 
superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  in  the  northern  de- 
partment." In  addition  the  sum  of  three  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  was  usually  appropriated  for  office 
rent,  stationery,  and  incidental  expenses.42  Although 
the  general  duties  of  the  Superintendent  of  Indian 
Affairs  came  within  the  regular  salary,  special  ap- 


44        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

propriations  for  negotiating  Indian  treaties  usually 
allowed  the  commissioners  (of  whom  the  Governor 
was  generally  one)  eight  dollars  per  day,  exclusive 
of  expenses  during  the  time  actually  engaged.43 
There  were  no  other  fees  or  emoluments  connected 
with  the  office  of  Governor  that  received  official  re- 
cognition, and  the  regular  appropriation  seems  to 
have  been  quite  sufficient  at  first  for  the  needs. 

The  powers  given  to  the  Governor  were  ample 
and  almost  plenary  in  their  completeness.  To  briefly 
recapitulate,  it  is  seen  that  as  chief  executive  he  was 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  militia  and  appointed  all 
military  officers  below  those  of  general  rank,  as  well 
as  all  civil  officers  except  the  Secretary  and  the  three 
Judges;  he  laid  out  counties  and  townships  at  his 
discretion ;  and  he  had  the  power  to  call  an  election 
for  Representatives  and  apportion  them  among  the 
counties.  He  also  had  the  usual  administrative  du- 
ties of  a  Governor  to  enforce  the  laws  and  preserve 
the  peace  and  security  of  the  Territory. 

Besides  his  executive  functions  the  Governor,  in 
conjunction  with  the  Judges,  had  the  power  to  adopt 
such  laws  as  were  deemed  necessary  for  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Territory.  The  Judges  could  not  act 
alone  in  this  matter,  and  so  the  Governor  became  an 
indispensable  and  almost  controlling  factor  in  the 
legislative  branch  of  the  government.  Even  after 
the  second  stage  had  been  entered  upon  and  a  pop- 
ular assembly  had  assumed  the  law-making  power 
the  absolute  veto  of  the  Governor  and  his  right  to 


THE  TERRITORIAL  EXECUTIVE  45 

convene  or  dissolve  the  assembly  gave  him  a  large 
control  over  legislation.  The  Governor  was  thus  in 
fact  the  head  and  body  of  the  Territorial  govern- 
ment. 

It  may  seem  that  such  an  extensive  concentra- 
tion of  power  in  the  hands  of  one  man  is  little  short 
of  despotism.  The  judicial  powers  exercised  by  the 
Judges  were  alone  of  all  the  functions  of  government 
beyond  the  control  of  the  Governor,  who  was  respon- 
sible only  to  the  distant  and  often  slow-moving  Fed- 
eral head.  But  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  new 
Territory  was  a  wild  frontier  land  with  few  and 
scattered  settlers,  isolated  traders  and  trappers,  and 
roving  bands  of  Indians.  Here,  if  ever,  there  was 
need  for  a  strong  and  vigorous  administration  — 
swift  in  action,  sure  in  execution,  and  with  a  single, 
unhampered  purpose.  In  frontier  regions,  as  has 
been  aptly  said,  "personalities  counted  for  more 
than  principles,  and  eloquence  and  combativeness 
for  more  than  social  culture  and  wealth."44  One 
strong,  fearless  man  with  large  powers  could  suc- 
cessfully cope  with  the  exigencies  of  such  a  situation 
where  an  intricate  though  model  government  fitted 
for  an  older  community  would  fail  utterly. 

Moreover,  the  centering  of  responsibility  in  the 
Governor  was  commensurate  with  the  concentration 
of  powers.  The  responsibility  may  have  been  to  a 
distant  head,  but  it  was  definite  and  personal.  The 
Governor  alone  was  responsible  for  a  just  adminis- 
tration and  for  the  welfare  of  the  Territory,  and  this 


46        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

fact  was  bound  to  act  as  an  effective  check  upon  the 
too  arbitrary  exercise  of  his  powers. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  real  character 
of  the  government  depended  almost  entirely  upon 
the  ability  and  personality  of  the  Governor.  If  he 
were  incompetent,  dominated  by  selfish  interests  or 
influenced  by  unscrupulous  advisers,  the  way  would 
be  open  for  great  evil,  the  inevitable  result  of  which 
would  be  oppression.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  were 
strong  and  high  principled,  and  exercised  his  author- 
ity solely  for  the  best  interests  of  the  Territory,  he 
could  exert  a  potent  influence  toward  building  up  a 
strong  and  efficient  system  that  would  be  the  founda- 
tion for  future  permanent  forms  of  government.  It 
is  a  sufficient  commentary  upon  the  wisdom  of  the 
appointments  and  the  efficiency  of  the  system  to  say 
that,  with  rare  exceptions,  the  Territorial  Governors 
in  the  United  States  have  been  able  men  who  have 
builded  firmly  and  well  in  founding  new  governments 
for  the  growing  West. 

The  Territorial  Governor  presents  a  distinct 
type  of  executive.  Although  in  many  respects  his 
position  resembles  that  of  the  Provincial  Governor 
of  the  American  colonies  and  even  approaches  that 
of  the  modern  European  colonial  Governor,45  this 
western  executive  was,  nevertheless,  a  peculiarly 
American  institution  erected  out  of  definite  material 
to  meet  a  definite  need.  In  organization  the  office 
of  Governor  was  exceptionally  well  fitted  for  its  pur- 
pose, and  in  its  actual  workings  in  the  Territories  of 


THE  TERRITORIAL  EXECUTIVE  47 

the  Old  Northwest  it  will  be  seen  to  round  out  into  a 
permanent  form  of  executive  for  the  Territories  of 
the  United  States. 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIE  AND  THE  NORTH- 
WEST TERRITORY 

On  October  5,  1787,  the  Congress  of  the  Confed- 
eration elected  General  Arthur  St.  Clair  as  the  first 
Governor  of  the  Territory  northwest  of  the  Ohio.46 
St.  Clair  was  born  in  Scotland,  of  a  prominent  fam- 
ily, and  was  a  man  of  wide  experience  and  recog- 
nized ability.  He  had  served  with  distinction  as  a 
soldier  in  both  the  French  and  Indian  and  the  Rev- 
olutionary wars,  was  a  staunch  friend  of  Washing- 
ton, and  had  been  the  President  of  the  Congress  of 
the  Confederation  at  the  time  the  Ordinance  of  1787 
was  adopted.  He  was  honest  in  his  purposes,  firm 
in  his  convictions,  and  unyielding  in  the  discharge  of 
his  duty  as  he  saw  it.  Jacob  Burnet,  a  pioneer  of 
the  Old  Northwest,  an  able  lawyer,  and  at  one  time 
a  member  of  the  Legislative  Council,  has  left  us  the 
following  estimate  of  Governor  St.  Clair: 

During  the  continuance  of  the  first  grade  of  that  im- 
perfect government,  he  enjoyed  the  respect  and  confidence 
of  every  class  of  the  people.  He  was  plain  and  simple  in 
his  dress  and  equipage,  open  and  frank  in  his  manners, 
and  accessible  to  persons  of  every  rank.  .  .  .  The  Gov- 
ernor was  unquestionably  a  man  of  superior  talents,  of 
extensive  information,  and  of  great  uprightness  of  pur- 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  49 

pose,  as  well  as  suavity  of  manners.  His  general  course, 
though  in  the  main  correct,  was  in  some  respects  injur- 
ious to  his  own  popularity;  but  it  was  the  result  of  an 
honest  exercise  of  his  judgment.  He  not  only  believed 
that  the  power  he  claimed  belonged  legitimately  to  the 
executive,  but  was  convinced  that  the  manner  in  which 
he  exercised  it,  was  imposed  upon  him  as  a  duty,  by  the 
Ordinance;  and  was  calculated  to  advance  the  best  inter- 
ests of  the  Territory.47 

The  task  of  guiding  the  new  Territory  was  in 
good  hands,  but  the  difficulties  to  be  encountered 
were  destined  to  try  to  the  utmost  the  mettle  of  even 
such  a  sturdy  character  as  Arthur  St.  Glair. 

Some  time  was  consumed  by  the  new  Governor 
in  arranging  his  affairs  preparatory  to  entering 
upon  his  administrative  duties,  and  in  the  mean- 
time the  inhabitants  of  the  western  country  had  de- 
vised temporary  expedients  to  preserve  peace  and 
order.  Since  the  majority  of  the  settlers  at  this 
time  were  from  the  Southwest  the  methods  employed 
were  undoubtedly  those  of  the  backwoodsman  —  in- 
dividual vigilance  and  the  summary  visitation  of 
punishment.  But  the  little  band  of  New  Englanders, 
who  in  April,  1788,  founded  Marietta  on  the  banks 
of  the  Ohio,  with  true  Puritan  instinct,  adopted  a 
temporary  code  which  they  publicly  proclaimed  by 
tacking  it  upon  a  tree  and  selecting  one  of  their  num- 
ber to  enforce  its  provisions.48  A  traveler  who 
journeyed  down  the  Ohio  recorded  in  his  journal 
that  many  needed  regulations  for  the  government  of 
the  new  colony  were  read,  militia  officers  named,  and 


50       GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

provisions  for  guard  and  military  duty  drawn  up.49 
On  July  9,  1788,  Governor  St.  Glair  arrived  at 
Marietta  and  was  welcomed  by  a  salute  of  fourteen 
guns  and  other  evidences  of  general  rejoicing.  Six 
days  later,  with  impressive  inaugural  ceremonies, 
he  was  installed  in  office.50 

The  local  makeshifts  at  government  which  St. 
Clair  found  upon  his  arrival  in  the  Territory  only 
served  to  emphasize  the  need  of  careful  organization, 
and  to  call  attention  more  strongly  to  the  vast  re- 
gions without  a  vestige  of  legal  supervision  or  con- 
trol. The  establishment  of  the  necessary  machinery 
for  local  government  was  therefore  one  of  the  first 
tasks  to  be  undertaken.  The  Ordinance  furnished 
the  fundamental  framework,  but  the  institutional  de- 
tails had  to  be  constructed  out  of  the  available  ma- 
terial. 

On  July  27,  1788,  the  Governor  issued  a  proc- 
lamation establishing  the  County  of  Washington, 
which  embraced  within  its  limits  all  of  the  settled 
portions  of  the  Territory.51  He  also  appointed  the 
necessary  sheriffs,  clerks  of  court,  judges  of  probate, 
justices  of  the  peace,  coroners,  and  some  lesser  civil 
officers,  as  well  as  the  required  military  officers.  The 
duties  of  these  officials  were  very  general  at  first  and 
without  jurisdictional  qualifications.  In  fact  the 
scattered  settlements  were  compelled  to  look  after 
their  own  interests  more  or  less  for  a  time.  The 
County  of  Washington  seems  to  have  been  erected 
mainly  as  a  basis  of  organization  until  laws  could  be 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  51 

passed  and  a  more  complete  system  put  into  opera- 
tion. 

The  Governor  had  scarcely  assumed  the  duties 
of  his  office  before  he  received  from  two  of  the 
Judges  the  draft  of  a  law  providing  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  militia.  St.  Clair,  being  a  soldier,  at  once 
saw  the  defects  in  the  proposed  organization,  which 
was  more  theoretical  than  practical;  and,  moreover, 
he  thought  he  perceived  an  undue  assumption  of  the 
initiative  on  the  part  of  the  Judges.  So  the  draft 
was  returned  with  recommendations  for  a  more  prac- 
tical system,  which  were  soon  embodied  in  the  first 
law  of  the  new  Territory.52 

Before  the  end  of  the  year  1788  the  Governor 
and  the  Judges,  acting  together  as  the  law-making 
body,  passed  ten  laws  to  meet  the  most  pressing 
needs  of  the  Territory.53  Four  years  later  one  of 
these  laws  which  had  considerably  shortened  the 
time  in  which  actions  at  law  could  be  brought,  was 
disapproved  of  by  Congress.54  The  law  was  evi- 
dently regarded  as  too  radical  a  departure  from  the 
recognized  legal  standard  of  a  statute  of  limitation, 
although  it  may  have  been  founded  on  sound  policy 
in  respect  to  conditions  as  they  existed  in  the  Terri- 
tory. The  law  respecting  crimes  and  punishments 
was  also  later  repealed  and  a  substitute  law  was  en- 
acted to  meet  the  need  of  changed  conditions.55  With 
these  two  exceptions  the  ten  statutes  were  later  con- 
firmed by  the  Territorial  legislature  and  embodied 


52        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

in  the  code,  thus  indicating  the  permanent  fitness  of 
these  early  enactments. 

Officers  having  been  appointed  and  laws  pro- 
mulgated, the  next  step  in  the  organization  of  the 
government  was  the  establishment  of  a  system  of 
courts.  Accordingly,  on  September  2, 1788,  with  ap- 
propriate ceremonies,  the  judiciary  was  formally  in- 
augurated.56 

The  judicial  system  had  evidently  been  carefully 
planned,  and  it  was  surprisingly  comprehensive  for 
a  new  country.  The  three  Judges,  appointed  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  sitting  together 
formed  the  Supreme  Court,  which  had  a  general  Ter- 
ritorial and  appellate  jurisdiction  and  convened 
whenever  and  wherever  the  three  members  could 
come  together.  The  court  of  common  pleas  was  an 
inferior  court  having  a  general  common  law  juris- 
diction, though  concurrent  in  the  various  counties 
with  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  was 
made  up  of  not  less  than  three  nor  more  than  seven 
appointive  judges.  The  general  quarter  sessions  of 
the  peace  was  a  still  lower  court  with  a  limited  crim- 
inal jurisdiction,  and  was  composed  of  a  number  of 
justices  in  each  county.57 

The  judges  and  justices  of  the  two  lower  courts 
were  also  given  certain  civil  and  criminal  powers 
that  could  be  exercised  individually  outside  of  the 
regular  court.  This  provision  afforded  better  pro- 
tection to  the  people  and  facilitated  the  ordinary 
business  of  the  courts.  Justice  was  not  dependent 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  53 

upon  the  periodical  sittings  of  the  courts,  but  became 
more  swift  and  sure  at  all  times  —  a  very  necessary- 
precaution  in  a  frontier  country.  The  pioneer  judges 
may  have  been  ignorant  of  many  of  the  forms  of  law, 
but  they  seem  to  have  been  able  to  dispense  the  kind 
of  frontier  justice  that  was  best  suited  to  the  par- 
ticular case  in  hand.58  Law  and  justice  are  funda- 
mental to  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  any  commu- 
nity, and  the  early  establishment  of  a  sound  and  pro- 
gressive judicial  policy  contributed  in  a  large  meas- 
ure to  the  success  of  Territorial  government  in  the 
Old  Northwest. 

In  1790  the  counties  of  Knox,  St.  Glair,  and 
Hamilton  were  established  in  the  same  manner  as 
the  County  of  Washington.59  The  necessary  officers 
were  appointed  and  their  respective  jurisdictions 
were  somewhat  more  carefully  defined  than  before. 
At  the  same  time  the  local  government  was  further 
developed  by  the  organization  of  civil  townships. 
The  Governor  and  Judges  passed  a  law  requiring 
the  justices  of  the  court  of  quarter  sessions  to  divide 
each  county  into  townships  with  such  boundaries  as 
they  should  deem  proper.  They  were  to  appoint  for 
each  of  such  townships  a  constable  to  act  ''specially" 
for  the  township  and  "generally"  for  the  county, 
and  also  a  clerk  and  one  or  more  overseers  of  the 
poor.60 

The  system  of  local  government  thus  established 
indicates  the  predominance  of  southern  and  middle 
Atlantic  State  influences  rather  than  the  town  meet- 


54        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

ing  tendency  of  the  New  England  States.  In  fact  the 
system  so  closely  resembled  that  of  Pennsylvania 
that  it  is  probable  that  St.  Clair,  who  was  himself  a 
Pennsylvanian,  was  largely  instrumental  in  framing 
it.  If  this  is  true  it  affords  an  interesting  example 
of  the  influence  of  the  Governor  in  practical  matters. 

In  1802,  responding  to  the  desire  for  a  more 
democratic  local  government,  a  further  step  in  the 
evolution  of  the  characteristic  western  county-town- 
ship system  was  taken.  In  that  year  the  Territorial 
legislature  passed  an  act  establishing  the  township 
meeting  for  elections,  creating  several  new  offices, 
and  making  some  alterations  in  the  duties  of  the  va- 
rious officers.61  The  local  government  in  the  Terri- 
tories and  States  formed  out  of  the  Old  Northwest 
after  1802  may,  therefore,  be  said  to  be  the  result  of 
sectional  compromise,  since  it  combined  the  county 
system  of  the  southern  and  middle  States  with  ele- 
ments of  the  town  meeting  idea  of  New  England. 

There  are  many  inherent  difficulties  connected 
with  the  establishment  of  a  new  government  in  a  new 
country.  But  the  task  of  Governor  St.  Clair  became 
doubly  difficult,  for,  from  the  beginning,  he  had  to 
contend  against  inharmonious  elements  within  the 
inner  circles  of  the  governmental  organization  itself. 

The  Judges  were  sensitive  about  their  rights  in 
the  making  of  laws,  and  at  times  were  inclined  to 
resent  the  vigorous  and  practical  manner  in  which 
St.  Clair  shared  in  the  first  attempts  at  legislation. 
Shortly  after  the  rebuff  in  regard  to  the  organization 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  55 

of  the  militia  St.  Clair  declined  to  give  his  assent  to 
a  law  establishing  probate  offices  in  the  Territory, 
thereby  arousing  the  displeasure  of  the  Judges.  In 
a  letter  replying  to  Governor  St.  Clair,  Judges  Par- 
sons and  Varnum,  by  a  veiled  reference,  attempted 
to  interpret  the  clause  of  the  Ordinance  which  pro- 
vided that  the  ''governor  and  judges,  or  a  majority 
of  them,"  should  adopt  laws  for  the  Territory  as 
meaning  that  the  Judges  could  act  in  that  capacity 
without  the  Governor.  ''The  exercise  [of  legal  dis- 
cretion]", they  said,  "is  checked  by  the  tenures  of 
our  commissions,  the  necessity  that  the  governor  and 
two  of  the  judges,  or  that  all  the  judges,  must  agree, 
and  the  final  negative  of  Congress."62 

The  Governor,  however,  by  a  reply  as  vigorous 
as  it  was  unanswerable,  nipped  in  the  bud  this  at- 
tempt to  undermine  his  prerogative.  "I  conceive, 
gentlemen",  he  wrote,  "Congress  thought  there 
would  be  an  impropriety  in  leaving  the  adoption  of 
laws  by  which  the  people  of  the  district  were  for  a 
time  to  be  governed  solely  to  the  persons  who  were 
to  expound  them ;  much  greater,  however,  would  that 
impropriety  be  if  the  clause  of  the  Ordinance  goes 
not  only  to  adoption,  but  to  the  formation  of  laws. 
The  judges  would  in  that  case  be  complete  legisla- 
tors, which  is  the  very  definition  of  tyranny;  and 
though  that  arrangement  might  in  your  hands,  gen- 
tlemen, produce  no  evils,  no  man  can  tell  how  long 
this  stage  of  the  government  will  last,  or  who  may 
be  your  successors ;  nor  could  it  fail  to  produce  much 


56        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

uneasiness  in  the  minds  of  the  people  over  whom  so, 
possibly,  oppressive  an  authority  was  established."63 
It  was  fortunate  that  St.  Clair  maintained  this  posi- 
tion so  tenaciously,  for  his  sound  common  sense 
formed  a  balance-wheel  that  regulated  and  controlled 
the  often  erratic  proposals  of  the  Judges. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  while  some  of  the  Judges 
were  able  men,  they  often  went  to  extremes  in  their 
efforts  to  counteract  the  influence  of  the  Governor's 
decisive  personality ;  and  some  of  them  were  exceed- 
ingly narrow  and  prejudiced.  For  instance,  Judge 
John  Cleves  Symmes  had  secured  extensive  grants 
from  the  government  and  owned  vast  tracts  of  land 
in  the  Territory  while  on  the  bench,64  and  he  was 
from  the  first  unfriendly  to  the  Governor.  In  writ- 
ing to  St.  Clair  in  1791  in  reply  to  a  letter  from  the 
Governor,  Symmes  spoke  of  "harsh  sentences,  mor- 
tifying expressions  and  implied  reflections  therein 
used";  and  after  further  criticism  closed  by  saying: 
"It  is  no  longer  necessary  that  the  man  who  rises  to 
power  should  mount  his  pegasus,  by  setting  his  foot 
on  the  neck  of  him  who  is  not  quite  so  tall  as  him- 
self. ' ' 65  And  from  time  to  time  the  acts  of  St.  Clair 
called  for  his  vituperative  condemnation,  until  at 
last  after  a  bitter  indictment  he  boldly  called  upon 
the  Governor  to  resign.66 

While  St.  Clair  was  vigorous  in  what  he  said 
and  did,  he  was  at  all  times  dignified  and  courteous ; 
and  making  allowances  for  contemporary  partisan- 
ship and  prejudice,  it  is  generally  considered  that 


GOVERNOR  ST.  GLAIR  57 

he  endeavored  to  be  fair  to  his  opponents  as  well  as 
to  his  friends.  That  he  was  not  intolerant  or  un- 
reasonably obstinate  in  holding  to  his  own  views  is 
shown  in  another  difference  of  opinion  between  him 
and  the  Judges.  The  clause  of  the  Ordinance  of 
1787  which  related  to  the  law-making  power  provid- 
ed that  the  "governor  and  judges  ....  shall  adopt 
and  publish  in  the  district,  such  laws  of  the  original 
states,  criminal  and  civil,  as  may  be  necessary''. 
This  clause  plainly  gave  the  Governor  and  Judges 
no  authority  to  enact  laws  de  novo,  but  only  the 
power  to  select  such  statutes  as  had  previously  been 
passed  by  the  older  States.  It  is  probable  that  this 
provision  was  intended  as  a  check  upon  the  legis- 
lators by  confining  them  to  laws  approved  by  expe- 
rience, thus  being  an  additional  precaution  against 
unwise  legislation. 

In  actual  practice,  however,  this  clause  seriously 
hampered  the  Governor  and  Judges,  since  it  was 
very  difficult  to  find  laws  of  the  States  that  were  ap- 
plicable to  the  peculiar  conditions  in  the  Territory. 
And  so  the  Judges  proceeded  to  construe  the  power 
to  adopt  laws  into  authority  to  enact  new  ones ;  and 
a  majority  of  the  Territorial  laws  before  1795  were 
enacted  in  accordance  with  this  interpretation.  Gov- 
ernor St.  Clair  acquiesced  in  this  practice  with  great 
reluctance,  as  he  realized  that  it  was  stretching  the 
plain  limits  of  the  legislative  authority  granted  by 
the  Ordinance.67  But  the  manifest  necessity  of  the 
occasion  led  him  to  defer  to  the  Judges  and  to  what 


58        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

he  felt  would  be  for  the  best  interests  of  the  Terri- 
tory. 

The  attitude  of  Congress  toward  these  early 
Territorial  laws  was  one  of  indifference.  The  Ordi- 
nance provided  that  the  laws  were  to  remain  in  force 
unless  disapproved  of  by  Congress.  But  in  reality 
Congress  was  indifferent  until  especially  urged  to 
action.  Resolutions  were  occasionally  passed  by 
one  house  of  Congress  or  the  other  disapproving  of 
certain  Territorial  laws.  One  joint  resolution  to 
the  same  effect  was  introduced,  but  it  was  not  adopt- 
ed by  the  Senate,  it  is  said,  because  the  members  ac- 
cepted St.  Glair's  view  that  not  having  been  adopted 
in  accordance  with  the  Ordinance  the  laws  were  ipso 
facto  void  and  it  was  therefore  not  necessary  to  de- 
clare them  so.68  In  fact  only  one  law  was  disap- 
proved of  by  Congress.69  The  other  laws,  having 
been  adopted  and  published  in  the  Territory,  were 
considered  valid,  even  though  technically  defective 
in  the  manner  of  their  enactment ;  and  they  were  so 
necessary  to  the  welfare  of  the  Territory  that  they 
were  regularly  enforced  until  they  later  received  the 
proper  sanction  of  the  Territorial  legislature.70 

It  was  only  in  the  enactment  of  the  earliest  laws 
of  the  Territory,  however,  that  this  broad  interpreta- 
tion of  the  provision  of  the  Ordinance  was  put  into 
practice.  In  the  Maxwell  Code,  which  contains  the 
laws  for  the  year  1795,  the  statutes  of  the  original 
States  from  which  the  laws  were  taken  are  in  each 
case  indicated  in  the  heading.  It  is  a  significant  fact 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  59 

that  of  the  thirty-seven  laws  which  thus  express  their 
source,  twenty-five  were  taken  from  Pennsylvania, 
six  from  Massachusetts,  three  from  Virginia,  one 
from  New  York,  one  from  New  Jersey,  and  one  from 
Pennsylvania  and  New  York.71  This  predominance 
of  Pennsylvania  statutes  may  have  been  partly  due 
to  the  fact  that,  because  of  somewhat  similar  condi- 
tions, the  laws  of  Pennsylvania  were  especially  well 
suited  for  the  western  country.  But  it  is  also  doubt- 
less true  that  St.  Clair  was  so  strongly  imbued  with 
the  legal  system  and  the  institutions  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, that  he  impressed  them  strongly  upon  the  new 
Territory.  Such  facts  as  these  afford  an  insight 
into  the  molding  influences  at  work  in  the  Old  North- 
west, and  also  point  out  the  real  power  of  the  Ter- 
ritorial Governor. 

In  dealing  with  the  differences  between  the 
branches  of  his  government  St.  Clair,  in  his  charac- 
teristic way,  used  force  rather  than  tact.  Instead 
of  overcoming  opposition,  he  kept  it  continually 
stirred  up;  and  so  he  was  always  forced  to  contend 
against  adverse  elements  in  outlining  Territorial 
policies  and  in  carrying  them  into  effect. 

But  the  formation  and  administration  of  a  work- 
ing government  on  the  plan  outlined  in  the  Ordi- 
nance was  not  the  only  task  that  confronted  the  new 
Governor.  The  Territory  was  so  surrounded  and 
honeycombed  by  conflicting  interests  that  it  was  in- 
deed in  a  precarious  situation.  A  less  fearless  and 


60        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

self-confident  man  than  St.  Clair  would  have  been 
appalled  at  the  prospect. 

In  the  first  place,  the  needs  of  the  settlers  de- 
manded attention.  As  nearly  as  can  be  determined 
there  were  less  than  seven  thousand  white  people  in 
the  Territory  at  the  time  of  its  organization,  and 
they  were  scattered  over  many  hundred  miles  of 
wilderness.72  The  Americans  were  comparatively 
few  and  widely  scattered,  and  consisted  of  a  hetero- 
genous  class  of  emigrants  from  many  different 
States,  clustered  in  small  settlements  at  the  most 
favorable  locations  along  the  banks  of  the  rivers. 
But  more  people  were  constantly  coming,  and  par- 
ticularly during  the  first  few  summers  settlers  began 
to  pour  into  the  Ohio  country.  Many  of  these  new- 
comers, especially  the  old  Revolutionary  soldiers, 
were  indigent  or  ill-prepared  to  withstand  the  rigors 
of  an  extreme  winter,  and  consequently  they  often 
suffered  the  greatest  hardships  and  privations.  The 
French  inhabitants  at  the  old  posts  on  the  Wabash 
and  Mississippi  rivers  were  also  often  in  destitute 
circumstances. 

With  few  resources  at  his  command  St.  Clair 
put  forth  his  best  efforts  to  relieve  this  distress,  and 
during  the  first  years  of  his  administration  the  calls 
upon  him  for  relief  formed  an  important  element  in 
the  problems  of  government,  as  well  as  imposing  a 
great  personal  burden  upon  the  Governor  himself. 
"He  made  repeated  journeys",  says  his  biographer, 
' '  from  one  part  of  the  Territory  to  another,  sleeping 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  61 

upon  the  ground  or  in  an  open  boat,  and  living  upon 
coarse  and  uncertain  fare.  At  one  time  he  traveled 
in  this  manner  a  distance  of  five  thousand  miles, 
without  the  means  of  protection  against  inclement 
weather,  and  without  rest. ' ' 73 

In  the  second  place,  the  various  foreign  settle- 
ments within  the  Territory  and  on  its  borders  formed 
a  disturbing  element.  The  settlements  of  French 
and  Creoles,  mainly  at  Vincennes,  Kaskaskia,  and 
the  Illinois  villages,  together  with  the  French  traders 
and  trappers,  were  difficult  to  handle.  Accustomed 
as  these  people  were  to  the  French  system  of  gov- 
ernment, and  unable  to  comprehend  or  appreciate 
American  ideas  or  to  carry  out  the  small  measure  of 
self-government  provided  for  them,  the  task  of  gov- 
ernment became  a  very  puzzling  one.  The  Governor 
was  obliged  to  translate  all  the  laws  and  notices  for 
their  benefit ; 74  and  even  then  the  easy-going  French- 
men were  often  indifferent  in  their  obedience.  As 
General  Harmar  had  said,  they  were  fitted  only  for 
a  commandant  and  a  military  domination.75  They 
were,  indeed,  very  much  like  wayward  children  and 
required  about  as  much  attention. 

The  Spaniards  across  the  Mississippi  were  an- 
other and  even  greater  menace  to  the  Territory. 
Alien  by  blood  and  temperament,  with  a  blind  devo- 
tion to  Spain  and  her  interests,  they  were  intensely 
jealous  of  any  encroachment  that  would  tend  to  con- 
trol the  Mississippi  or  imperil  the  Spanish  territory 
of  Louisiana;  and  as  a  consequence  they  hampered 


62        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

the  movements  of  the  Americans  in  every  possible 
manner.  The  story  of  their  intrigues  and  desperate 
attempts  to  hold  their  colonies  in  the  new  world  is 
well  known,  and  it  must  be  apparent  that  they  were 
undesirable  neighbors  for  the  new  and  ambitious 
Territory  northwest  of  the  Ohio.76 

Embittered  by  the  loss  of  territory  that  followed 
the  Bevolution,  the  English  on  the  northern  border 
were  also  covertly  hostile.  They  realized  that  the 
westward  advancement  of  the  Americans  was  under- 
mining their  monopoly  of  the  fur  trade  and  would 
soon  open  up  a  ready  outlet  to  the  south  that  would 
divert  the  bulk  of  the  furs  and  skins  from  their 
northern  trading  posts.  Accordingly,  they  held  on 
to  Detroit  and  the  northern  frontier  long  after  they 
should  have  been  relinquished.  Thus,  for  years  De- 
troit remained  a  hotbed  from  which  emanated  evil 
influences  that  menaced  the  prosperity  of  the  North- 
west Territory.77  And  not  the  least  among  these 
baneful  influences  was  the  practice  of  inciting  the 
Indians  to  keep  up  a  constant  border  warfare  against 
the  Americans.78 

Again,  the  Public  Domain  itself  was  a  source  of 
considerable  trouble.  Innumerable  grants  of  land 
had  been  made  in  this  region  by  the  French  and  the 
English  governments,  and  after  the  establishment  of 
American  rule  the  civil  courts  and  the  successors  of 
John  Todd  had  also  assumed  the  right  to  make  land 
grants.  The  result  was  many  confusing  and  con- 
flicting claims  and  a  constant  contention  among  the 


GOVERNOR  ST.  GLAIR  63 

settlers.  The  French,  especially,  seldom  knew 
whether  they  had  any  title  to  their  lands  or  not ;  and 
they  were  constantly  appealing  to  the  Governor  for 
aid.  Many  settlers  had  also  staked  out  claims  which 
could  not  be  reconciled  with  those  of  their  neighbors, 
and  so  conflicts  concerning  boundaries  very  frequent- 
ly arose.  St.  Clair  was  instructed  to  adjust  these 
matters,  and  he  devoted  much  time  to  the  endeavor 
to  straighten  out  the  many  difficulties  which  had 
arisen.  But  finally  he  reported  that  in  a  great  num- 
ber of  cases  the  claims  were  irreconcilable  and 
recommended  the  right  of  preemption  for  actual  set- 
tlers.79 

Another  difficulty  was  that  neighboring  States 
often  pursued  policies  that  interfered  with  Terri- 
torial business,  and  often  their  selfish  indifference  or 
refusal  to  cooperate  worked  great  injury  to  the  Ter- 
ritory.80 

Finally,  the  Indians  were  without  doubt  the 
greatest  menace  to  the  safety  of  the  settlers  and  to 
the  successful  administration  of  the  government  of 
the  Territory.  With  growing  hostility  the  Indians 
saw  the  white  settlers  flocking  across  the  Ohio,  which 
they  considered  as  the  natural  boundary  of  their 
hunting  grounds.  Urged  on  by  the  intimations  and 
presents  of  English  agents  and  traders,  they  became 
more  and  more  treacherous  until  at  last  the  conflict 
with  the  settlers  became  a  relentless,  bloody  warfare. 
The  lonely  settler  in  his  cabin  or  the  dweller  in  the 
stronghold  of  the  settlement  were  alike  in  danger; 


64        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

for  the  savage,  silent  as  the  night  and  implacable  in 
his  murderous  desires,  would  strike  in  an  unguarded 
moment  and  carry  off  in  triumph  the  bloody  scalps 
of  his  victims.  The  life  of  the  isolated  settler  be- 
came a  constant  nightmare  of  fear,  and  many  times 
Indian  war  parties  spread  terror,  anguish,  and  des- 
olation throughout  the  Territory. 

Among  the  first  communications  received  by 
Governor  St.  Clair  from  the  National  government 
was  one  which  contained  secret  instructions  regard- 
ing the  conduct  of  Indian  affairs,81  and  a  perusal  of 
the  Governor's  correspondence  will  reveal  the  fact 
that  dealings  with  the  Indians  engrossed  the  greater 
part  of  his  time  and  attention.82  He  held  councils 
and  negotiated  treaties  with  the  friendly  tribes,  and 
often  personally  conducted  expeditions  and  cam- 
paigns against  hostile  and  depredating  bands  of  In- 
dians. But  his  resources  were  entirely  inadequate 
to  cope  successfully  with  the  situation,  and  his  ap- 
peals for  aid  met  with  but  feeble  response  from  the 
National  government.  The  troops  at  his  command 
consisted  of  a  few  regulars  assisted  by  the  Territo- 
rial militia.  St.  Clair  was  not  sufficiently  popular  to 
secure  the  confidence  of  his  troops,  and  hence  was 
not  able  to  make  the  most  of  such  forces  as  were  at 
his  command.  Furthermore,  he  was  a  colonial  sol- 
dier trained  in  the  school  of  regular  warfare  and  he 
did  not  fully  understand  or  sympathize  with  the 
western  methods  of  fighting.  As  a  result  his  cam- 
paigns were  by  no  means  universally  successful. 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  65 

Finally,  in  November,  1791,  while  encamped  on  a 
branch  of  the  Wabash  River  his  small  army  was  at- 
tacked and  mowed  down  by  the  hidden  savages  in  a 
slaughter  that  stands  second  only  to  Braddock's  de- 
feat in  a  previous  war.  The  Governor,  fatigued  by 
continual  exertion  and  weakened  by  sickness,  was  al- 
most incapable  of  commanding  at  such  a  critical 
moment,  but  he  bravely  remained  at  his  post.  "St. 
Clair,  with  his  gray  hair  streaming  under  his  cocked 
hat,  had  horse  after  horse  shot  under  him  as  he  en- 
deavored to  make  his  force  stand  steady  amid  the 
frightful  carnage.  He  had  eight  bullets  pierce  his 
garments,  but  not  one  grazed  his  skin."83  But  all 
his  endeavors  were  in  vain,  for  incompetence  had 
undermined  the  efficiency  of  the  army.  St.  Clair  un- 
doubtedly showed  lack  of  foresight  and  poor  general- 
ship in  planning  the  campaign  and  in  allowing  him- 
self to  be  trapped ;  but  the  consensus  of  opinion  now 
seems  to  be  that  it  was  mismanagement  and  lack  of 
support  on  the  part  of  the  general  government  that 
formed  the  fundamental  cause  of  this  crushing  de- 
feat.84 

The  people  of  the  whole  country  were  greatly 
wrought  up  over  this  unexpected  disaster,  and  the 
National  government  was  also  awakened  to  a  realiza- 
tion of  the  seriousness  of  the  situation.85  Congress 
immediately  authorized  the  raising  of  troops,  which, 
drilled  and  led  by  General  Anthony  Wayne,  soon 
broke  the  Indian  resistance  and  secured  comparative 
peace  for  the  Territory. 


66        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

It  was  amid  such  trying  conditions  as  these  that 
the  work  of  governing  the  Territory  was  carried  on. 
It  should  not  be  forgotten  that  this  was  the  first  gov- 
ernment of  its  kind  and  that  Governor  St.  Glair  had 
few  precedents  to  guide  him.  The  inherent  diffi- 
culties and  the  external  dangers  combined  to  make 
the  task  an  unusually  difficult  one.  The  way,  how- 
ever, was  not  everywhere  beset  with  obstacles,  and 
much  was  accomplished  in  the  ordinary  course  of 
administration. 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  Ordinance  of  1787 
made  no  provision  for  the  repeal  of  laws  adopted  by 
the  Governor  and  Judges  during  the  first  stage  of 
Territorial  government.  The  laws  were  to  remain 
in  force  until  the  organization  of  the  legislature  "un- 
less disapproved  of  by  Congress",  regardless  of 
whether  in  practice  they  had  become  obsolete  or  not, 
or  even  if  conditions  had  so  changed  as  to  render 
such  laws  oppressive.  St.  Clair  called  attention  to 
this  evil,  and  in  1792  Congress  passed  an  act  giving 
the  Governor  and  Judges  the  authority  to  repeal  laws 
as  well  as  to  make  them.86  This  necessary  adjunct 
to  the  law-making  power  was  exercised  with  good  re- 
sults, especially  at  the  time  of  the  codification  of  the 
laws. 

Another  cause  of  complaint  among  certain 
classes  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Territory  was  the 
difficulty  of  convening  the  Supreme  Court.  The 
country  was  still  an  untamed  wilderness  and  the  un- 
certainties of  travel  from  one  sitting  to  another  were 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  67 

so  pronounced  that  two  Judges  could  seldom  get 
together  without  great  expense  and  hardship.87  So 
Congress,  in  the  act  of  1792  just  referred  to,  em- 
powered a  single  Judge  to  hold  court  without  ap- 
peal.88 St.  Clair  opposed  this  measure  as  impolitic 
—  for  the  very  cogent  reasons  that  it  gave  one  Judge 
absolute  legal  power,  and  that  two  of  the  Judges  had 
large  landed  interests  upon  which  they  could  not 
fairly  sit  in  judgment  and  which  might  tend,  though 
unconsciously,  to  influence  their  adjudication  if  act- 
ing alone.  On  these  grounds  he  very  strongly  ad- 
vised the  repeal  of  the  measure.89  Congress  later 
reconsidered  the  ill-advised  law,  and  in  accordance 
with  St.  Glair's  suggestion  it  was  repealed. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  first  ten  laws,  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Judges  continued  to  enact  statutes  cover- 
ing practically  the  whole  range  of  jurisprudence. 
St.  Clair  had  for  some  time  cherished  a  desire  to  re- 
vise and  codify  these  laws ;  and  so  in  1795  the  codifi- 
cation was  begun  by  the  Governor  and  Judges.  The 
work  was  done  systematically  and  with  the  idea  of 
conforming  to  the  provisions  of  the  Ordinance  as 
well  as  of  securing  a  complete  code.  The  judicial 
system  was  altered  in  certain  respects.  The  sittings 
of  the  Supreme  Court  were  fixed  at  Marietta  and 
Cincinnati;  circuit  courts  were  established  to  facil- 
itate the  trial  of  higher  cases;  and  orphan  courts 
were  instituted  for  the  purpose  of  enlarging  the  pow- 
ers of  the  probate  judges.90  As  an  addition  to  the 
principles  of  the  Common  Law  a  statute  was  enacted 


68        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

at  this  time  providing  equitable  remedies  in  certain 
cases.  This  law  was  adopted  from  the  statutes  of 
Massachusetts  and  was  the  beginning  of  equity  pro- 
cedure in  the  Territory.91 

The  most  noticeable  feature  of  the  laws  thus 
codified  is  the  criminal  code.92  At  that  time  (and 
indeed  until  long  afterward)  the  old  barbaric  modes 
of  punishment  were  still  employed  in  the  eastern 
States.  And  so,  naturally,  they  were  adopted  in  the 
Northwest  Territory,  where  there  may  have  been 
more  necessity  for  such  summary  measures  owing 
to  the  lack  of  prisons  and  the  machinery  for  prosecu- 
tion. At  any  rate  the  death  penalty  was  provided 
for  murder  and  treason,  and  for  arson  if  accom- 
panied by  loss  of  life.  Perjury  was  punishable  by 
a  fine  of  not  over  sixty  dollars,  or  by  whipping  not 
to  exceed  thirty-nine  stripes  and  sitting  in  the  pillory 
not  over  two  hours ;  but  the  culprit  was  also  declared 
forever  incapable  of  holding  office,  giving  testimony, 
or  serving  as  a  juror.  For  obstructing  an  officer  of 
the  law  the  offender  was  to  receive  not  to  exceed 
thirty-nine  lashes,  and  be  fined  not  more  than  three 
hundred  dollars.  Larceny  was  punished  by  requir- 
ing restitution  of  double  the  value  of  the  article 
stolen,  with  a  fine  or  thirty-nine  stripes  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  court.  Drunkenness  was  punishable 
by  a  fine,  the  non-payment  of  which  consigned  the 
offender  to  the  stocks.  Various  other  crimes  and 
offences  were  punished  proportionately.  Imprison- 
ment for  debt  was  also  especially  provided  for  by 


GOVERNOR  ST.  CLAIR  69 

law.93  These  measures  seem  harsh  to-day,  but  they 
were  in  harmony  with  the  spirit  of  the  time. 

The  general  system  of  law  contained  in  the  code 
was  fairly  representative ;  but  as  a  final  and  compre- 
hensive measure,  there  was  added  a  statute  which 
provided  that  the  Common  Law  of  England  prior  to 
the  fourth  year  of  the  reign  of  James  I  should  be  in 
full  force  within  the  Territory.94  It  would  perhaps 
have  been  difficult  to  define  just  what  the  Common 
Law  of  England  was  during  the  period  named,  but  to 
a  legal  mind  it  conveyed  a  very  definite  idea;  and 
thus  in  a  substantial  manner  the  law  served  a  useful 
purpose,  even  though  by  the  Ordinance  the  course 
of  the  Common  Law  in  judicial  proceedings  had 
already  been  guaranteed  to  the  people  of  the  Terri- 
tory. It  could  hardly  be  expected  that  a  new  code 
in  a  new  country  would  be  sufficiently  ample  to  meet 
the  needs  of  all  future  adjudications;  and  so  in  a 
contingency  where  none  of  the  laws  of  the  code  were 
applicable,  and  without  any  reported  cases  to  serve 
as  precedents,  justice  might  easily  be  defeated  un- 
less there  was  something  to  fall  back  upon.  But 
with  the  general  principles  of  the  Common  Law  in 
reserve,  the  Judges  could  without  difficulty  decide 
justly  and  impartially  all  cases  which  came  before 
them.  The  result  of  the  codification  was  on  the 
whole  very  satisfactory,  and  it  gave  to  the  Terri- 
tory a  definite  body  of  laws. 

When  ten  years  under  the  first  stage  of  govern- 
ment had  passed,  the  population  had  so  increased 


70        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

that  the  Territory  was  entitled  to  enter  upon  the 
second  stage  provided  for  in  the  Ordinance.  Pur- 
suant to  the  call  of  the  Governor  in  1798  Kepre- 
sentatives  were  elected,  and  in  the  following  year 
they  assembled  and  chose  ten  Councilmen  from 
whom  the  President  of  the  United  States  selected 
five.95  On  September  16,  1799,  the  first  Territorial 
legislature  of  the  Old  Northwest  convened  at  Cin- 
cinnati. 

Governor  St.  Clair  was  now  confronted  by  an- 
other element  opposing  his  administrative  policy. 
"While  it  is  doubtless  true  that  the  first  legislature 
contained  many  men  of  considerable  ability,  and  that 
the  laws  enacted  were  in  the  main  salutary,  never- 
theless some  of  the  enactments  were  certainly  open 
to  question.  The  legislature,  all  powerful  in  its  own 
eyes,  undertook  a  rather  comprehensive  scheme  of 
laying  out  new  counties  which  met  with  the  disap- 
proval of  the  Governor.  And  so,  in  a  speech  termi- 
nating the  protracted  session,  he  vetoed  absolutely 
eleven  acts,  six  of  which  related  to  the  erection  of 
new  counties.  "It  appears  to  me",  said  St.  Clair, 
"that  the  erecting  of  new  counties  is  the  proper 
business  of  the  Executive.  It  is,  indeed,  provided 
that  the  boundaries  of  counties  may  be  altered  by 
the  legislature;  but  that  is  quite  a  different  thing 
from  originally  establishing  them.  They  must  exist 
before  they  can  be  altered,  and  the  provision  is  ex- 
press that  the  Governor  shall  proceed,  from  time  to 
time,  as  it  may  become  necessary  to  lay  them  out. 


GOVEENOR  ST.  CLAIR  71 

While  I  shall  ever  most  studiously  avoid  encroach- 
ing on  any  of  the  rights  of  the  legislature,  you  will 
naturally  expect,  gentlemen,  that  I  should  guard 
with  equal  care  those  of  the  Executive. ' ' 96 

This  free  use  of  the  veto  power  caused  much  dis- 
satisfaction among  the  people  and  precipitated  an 
extended  controversy  with  the  legislature.  There 
seems  to  have  been  some  sort  of  a  political  scheme 
in  this  proposed  districting  of  the  Territory,  and  the 
legislators  were  in  reality  as  much  angered  because 
of  the  frustration  of  their  pet  plans  as  they  appeared 
to  be  over  the  alleged  abuse  of  the  veto  power.  They 
had  attempted  a  species  of  what  in  modern  parlance 
would  be  termed  "gerrymandering".  But  there  were 
also  outside  influences  at  work,  and  as  one  writer 
points  out,  much  of  the  bitterness  of  the  controversy 
was  "due  to  land-speculators,  anxious  to  influence 
the  erection  of  counties  and  the  location  of  county 
towns,  who  found  Governor  St.  Clair  standing  in 
their  way."97 

It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  St.  Clair  be- 
came very  unpopular  and  that  his  relations  with  the 
legislature  grew  more  and  more  bitter.  Memorials 
were  addressed  to  Congress,  and  there  were  numer- 
ous popular  complaints,  but  the  Governor  entirely 
ignored  them  all.  Throughout  the  struggle  with  the 
legislature — which  lasted  until  the  end  of  the  Ter- 
ritorial government  —  St.  Clair  never  wavered  from 
the  straight  line  of  duty  as  he  saw  it.  He  may  have 
drawn  the  line  more  strictly  because  of  the  opposi- 


72        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

tion  to  him,  but  it  was  still  his  duty  to  the  Territory 
as  it  appeared  to  him.  Thus  he  continually  thwarted 
the  machinations  of  the  designing  or  the  unscru- 
pulous, and  also  prevented  the  passage  of  much  un- 
wise, though  well  intended  legislation.  He  may  have 
used  the  veto  power  with  considerable  freedom,  but 
it  was  a  precaution  on  the  side  of  safety  which  on 
the  whole  undoubtedly  resulted  beneficially  for  the 
Territory. 

In  spite  of  his  fearless  devotion  to  duty,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  in  many  ways  St.  Glair  was  unfor- 
tunate in  his  attitude  toward  the  people  over  whom 
he  was  placed.  He  was  a  staunch  Federalist,  while 
the  people  of  the  Territory  were  ardent  Eepublicans, 
and  this  fact  opened  a  breach  which  his  eastern  in- 
clinations and  his  entire  failure  to  appreciate  the 
frontiersman  widened  still  further.  The  autocratic 
tendencies  of  St.  Clair  were  incompatible  with  west- 
ern independence  and  democracy ;  and  it  is  probable 
that  his  vigorous  administration  would  have  aroused 
violent  opposition  long  before  it  did  if  it  had  not 
been  tempered  with  dignity  and  impartiality.  As 
it  was  the  conflict  gradually  became  more  intense 
until  the  final  split  came  on  the  question  of  the  forma- 
tion of  a  State  government  for  the  eastern  part  of 
the  Territory. 

St.  Clair  opposed  the  movement  for  statehood, 
and  a  bitter  controversy  followed.  Indignation 
against  the  Governor  ran  so  high  at  Chillicothe  that 
on  two  successive  evenings  the  mob  insulted  the  G-ov- 


GOVERNOE  ST.  CLAIR  73 

ernor  until  he  finally  adjourned  the  legislature  to 
Cincinnati,  thus  removing  the  seat  of  government  to 
the  latter  place.98  The  Territory  was  torn  with  dis- 
sension, but  in  the  end  the  advocates  of  statehood 
triumphed. 

While  the  first  convention  to  form  a  State  con- 
stitution was  in  session,  St.  Clair  sent  word  that  as 
Governor  he  would  address  the  convention.  A  res- 
olution that  he  should  be  heard  was  voted  down,  but 
in  another  resolution  the  members  of  the  convention 
announced  their  willingness  to  listen  to  Arthur  St. 
Clair,  Sr.,  Esq.,  if  he  wished  to  speak."  This  direct 
rebuff  was  too  much  even  for  the  self-contained  St. 
Clair,  and  he  launched  forth  in  a  speech  which  it 
must  be  admitted  somewhat  overstepped  the  bounds 
of  dignity  and  propriety.  The  result  was  a  severe 
rebuke  from  the  President  of  the  United  States,  ac- 
companied by  a  summary  dismissal  from  the  govern- 
orship.100 "  Thomas  Jefferson  would  have  shown 
himself  a  larger  man",  is  Professor  Hinsdale's  com- 
ment, "if  he  had  overlooked  the  indiscretion  of  the 
Chillicothe  speech  and  permitted  the  venerable 
Governor  to  remain  at  the  head  of  the  Territory  the 
few  weeks  yet  to  elapse  before  it  ceased  to  exist."101 

It  was,  indeed,  an  unfortunate  ending  to  the  pub- 
lic career  of  Arthur  St.  Clair.  He  had  rendered 
faithful  service  to  his  country  and  had  given  his  best 
and  most  mature  years  to  the  building  up  of  the  Ter- 
ritory with  which  his  name  will  always  be  associated. 
His  strict  honesty  prevented  him  from  making 


74        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

money  either  by  virtue  of  his  office  or  15y  speculation 
in  land,  and  after  leaving  the  office  of  Governor  he 
lived  in  poverty  and  almost  hermit-like  retirement. 
Some  years  later  he  died,  unnoticed  and  unmourned 
by  a  forgetful  government  and  an  ungrateful  people. 

Thus  closed  the  history  of  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tory. In  1802  the  eastern  part  of  the  Territory  was 
admitted  into  the  Union  as  the  State  of  Ohio.102  The 
result  of  the  Territorial  strife  between  the  legislature 
and  the  Governor  found  expression  in  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  new  State.  In  its  reaction  against  one- 
man  power,  it  stripped  the  governorship  of  many  of 
its  usual  powers  and  duties,  so  that  the  Governor 
became  merely  a  figure-head  with  a  few  unimportant 
functions.103 

It  was  peculiarly  fortunate  that  the  system  of 
Territorial  government  in  the  United  States  was  at 
the  beginning  guided  by  so  able  and  steadfast  a 
Governor  as  Arthur  St.  Clair.  The  signal  success 
of  the  initial  trial  in  the  Northwest  Territory  must 
in  a  large  measure  be  ascribed  to  him. 


VI 

GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  THE  INDIANA 
TERRITORY 

The  Northwest  Territory  was  divided  by  an  act 
of  Congress  of  May  7,  1800;  and  all  that  part  lying 
west  of  a  line  beginning  at  the  Ohio  opposite  the 
mouth  of  the  Kentucky  River,  and  running  thence  to 
Fort  Recovery,  and  thence  north  to  the  Canadian 
border,  was  called  Indiana  Territory.104  The  reason 
for  this  division  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  Con- 
gress desired  to  admit  Ohio  into  the  Union  as  soon 
as  possible ;  and  since  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Ter- 
ritory had  grown  very  rapidly  in  population  this 
desire  might  soon  be  fulfilled.  Moreover,  it  was  be- 
coming increasingly  difficult  to  govern  the  older  part 
of  the  Territory  on  an  equal  basis  with  the  large 
western  region,  which  was  still  for  the  most  part  a 
wilderness  with  only  a  few  scattered  settlements.  In 
1800,  according  to  the  census,  there  were  only  four 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-five  people,  ex- 
clusive of  Indians ;  in  the  country  included  in  the  new 
Territory,  and  they  were  located  chiefly  at  or  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  villages  of  Vincennes,  Kaskaskia,  and 
Cahokia.  Courts  in  these  outlying  regions  were  held 
at  irregular  intervals;  while  administration  from  a 
distance  invited  many  demoralizing  tendencies.105 


76        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

The  act  of  Congress  provided  that  the  govern- 
ment of  the  Indiana  Territory  should  be  in  all  re- 
spects similar  to  that  outlined  in  the  Ordinance  of 
1787,  and  that  the  inhabitants  should  enjoy  all  the 
rights  and  advantages  secured  to  the  people  by  that 
instrument.  The  same  powers  and  duties  were  as- 
signed to  the  officers  and  they  were  to  receive  the 
same  emoluments  as  were  given  to  similar  officers 
in  the  Northwest  Territory.  By  thus  providing  for 
a  government  similar  to  that  of  the  older  Territory 
the  Ordinance  practically  transferred  to  the  Terri- 
tory of  Indiana  a  government  ready  made.  St.  Glair 
had  worked  out  many  of  the  most  difficult  problems 
of  administration,  and  the  new  Territory  inherited 
the  results  of  his  labors  and  experience. 

The  fourth  section  of  the  Organic  Act  of  the 
Indiana  Territory  made  the  further  provision  that 
the  part  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787  which  referred  to 
the  organization  of  a  general  assembly  should  be- 
come operative  whenever  it  was  shown  to  the  Gov- 
ernor that  a  majority  of  the  freeholders  desired  such 
an  assembly,  regardless  of  whether  the  Territory 
had  five  thousand  free  male  inhabitants  or  not.  The 
people  of  the  Indiana  country,  while  included  within 
the  bounds  and  jurisdiction  of  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tory, had  borne  their  share  of  the  trials  of  prepara- 
tion for  self-government.  Many  of  the  settlements, 
though  more  widely  scattered,  were  nearly  as  far  ad- 
vanced as  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Old  Northwest. 
Consequently  it  would  have  been  a  needless  waste 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA         77 

of  time,  as  well  as  an  unwarrantable  aggravation,  to 
have  placed  the  inhabitants  of  the  western  region 
back  in  the  initial  stages  of  the  Territorial  system. 
The  privilege  of  electing  a  general  assembly  upon 
the  demand  of  a  majority  of  the  voters  without  the 
necessity  of  waiting  for  a  large  increase  in  popula- 
tion was  a  distinct  step  in  advance. 

Under  these  favorable  circumstances  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  Indiana  Territory  was  organized  with 
William  Henry  Harrison  as  Governor.  Harrison 
was  a  man  well  fitted  for  the  position.  He  was  a 
product  of  the  West,  and  was  thoroughly  in  sym- 
pathy with  western  ideas  and  institutions.  He  had 
served  with  distinction  under  St.  Clair  and  Wayne 
and  was  well  trained  in  the  methods  of  Indian  war- 
fare. As  Secretary  of  the  Northwest  Territory 
toward  the  latter  part  of  St.  Glair's  administration, 
and  as  Delegate  to  Congress  from  that  Territory, 
Harrison  had  gained  much  valuable  experience  in 
the  management  of  Territorial  affairs.  Energetic 
and  courageous  and  at  the  same  time  prudent  in  his 
undertakings,  he  resembled  St.  Clair  in  the  strict 
honesty  with  which  he  administered  the  duties  of  his 
office.106 

While  a  Delegate  to  Congress  Harrison  had  se- 
cured the  passage  of  an  act  permitting  the  sale  of 
government  land  in  small  subdivisions  (instead  of 
in  tracts  of  four  thousand  acres  as  before),  thus  giv- 
ing the  individual  settler  an  opportunity  to  buy  di- 
rectly from  the  government,  instead  of  through  land 


78        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

companies.107  This  service  was  warmly  appreciated 
by  the  western  settlers  and  it  gained  popularity  for 
Harrison  throughout  the  West.  In  spite  of  the  some- 
what dictatorial  powers  which  he  possessed  as  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Indiana  Territory,  and  the  consequent 
difficulty  of  pleasing  everyone,  he  retained  the  good 
will  of  the  people  to  a  great  extent  during  his  entire 
administration. 

The  task  of  organizing  the  new  Territory  was 
not  a  difficult  one,  since  the  Governor  and  Judges 
were  not  obliged  to  formulate  and  enact  a  new  set  of 
fundamental  laws,  but  could  make  use  of  the  Code 
already  in  force  in  the  Northwest  Territory.  Instead 
of  being  hampered  at  the  outset,  as  St.  Glair  had 
been,  by  the  necessity  of  adopting  all  their  laws  from 
the  statutes  of  the  original  thirteen  States,  they  had 
the  advantage  of  a  complete  body  of  laws  ready  to  be 
applied  to  the  administration  of  the  new  Territory. 
The  code  of  laws  adopted  by  the  Governor  and 
Judges  of  the  Northwest  Territory  was  not  formally 
reenacted,  the  assumption  being  that  the  division  of 
the  Territory  was  simply  to  facilitate  administration 
and  that,  therefore,  the  laws  remained  in  force  in 
both  sections  the  same  as  though  there  had  been  no 
division.  Hence  it  was  that  the  first  legislative  acts 
of  the  Governor  and  Judges  of  the  Indiana  Terri- 
tory, passed  at  their  first  meeting  at  Point  Vincennes 
on  January  12,  1801,  were  laws  supplemental  to  or 
repealing  certain  laws  previously  enacted  in  the 
Northwest  Territory.108 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA         79 

Whenever  new  laws  were  adopted  in  the  Indiana 
Territory  the  usual  form  of  indicating  the  statute  of 
the  original  State  from  which  the  law  was  taken,  as 
required  by  the  Ordinance,  was  generally  employed, 
although  the  custom  continued  to  hamper  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Judges  in  their  work.  This  fact  is  illus- 
trated by  a  resolution  relative  to  ferries.  The  resolu- 
tion stated  that  the  law  at  that  time  provided  for 
application  to  the  legislature  for  permission  to  estab- 
lish ferries,  but  since  no  legislature  had  yet  been 
organized  in  the  Territory,  and  no  laws  on  the  sub- 
ject of  ferries  could  be  found  except  such  as  were  of 
a  purely  local  nature,  the  Governor  was  empowered 
to  establish  such  ferries  by  proclamation.109 

It  is  a  significant  fact  that  the  Governor  and 
Judges  of  the  Indiana  Territory  took  the  majority 
of  their  laws  from  the  statutes  of  southern  States. 
Of  those  laws  in  which  reference  was  made  to  the 
States  from  which  they  were  taken,  seven  were  from 
Virginia;  three  from  Kentucky;  two  from  Virginia 
and  Kentucky;  one  from  New  York,  Pennsylvania 
and  Virginia ;  one  from  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania ; 
and  two  from  Pennsylvania.110  Governor  Harrison 
was  a  Virginian  by  birth  and  early  training,  and  this 
fact  is  doubtless  a  partial  explanation  of  the  pre- 
dominance of  Virginia  statutes  adopted  during  the 
first  years  of  Territorial  government  in  Indiana. 

The  fact  that  the  Code  of  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tory was  employed  in  the  Indiana  Territory  would 
probably  not  have  occasioned  any  inconvenience  had 


80        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

not  Governor  Harrison  and  the  Judges  passed  sev- 
eral laws  modifying  judicial  procedure  to  meet  the 
requirements  of  the  new  country.111  These  changes 
gave  rise  to  complications  by  affording  opportunity 
for  a  clash  of  jurisdictions.  Mr.  Dunn  cites  an  in- 
teresting example  of  such  conflict  in  a  case  which 
came  before  the  Territorial  court  in  1803.  The  ques- 
tion was  one  concerning  a  law  regulating  prison 
bounds ;  and  the  court  held  that  a  law  passed  in  the 
Northwest  Territory,  even  after  1800  when  Indiana 
was  set  off  by  itself,  was  still  in  force  in  Wayne 
County,  which  had  been  added  to  the  Indiana  Terri- 
tory in  1802,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  an  en- 
tirely different  law  was  in  force  in  the  remainder  of 
Indiana.112  Thus  the  prisoner  incarcerated  under 
the  old  law  was  still  amenable  thereto,  although  his 
jailor  was  enforcing  a  different  law.  It  is  apparent 
that  confusion  would  necessarily  result  from  such  a 
duality  of  laws. 

Evidently  the  amendments  and  adaptations  of 
the  original  Code  were  made  without  proper  care  to 
harmonize  the  new  provisions  with  the  general  tenor 
of  the  laws  themselves,  and  this  process  of  incon- 
gruous grafting  and  unwise  pruning  played  havoc 
with  the  judicial  system  of  the  Indiana  Territory.113 
Consequently  the  use  of  the  completed  Code  of  the 
Northwest  Territory,  which  at  first  was  such  an  ad- 
vantage to  the  new  government,  later  became  the 
very  means  of  producing  irregularity.  The  evil  was 
partially  remedied  by  an  act  of  Congress  in  1815 ; 114 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA        81 

and  the  formation  of  a  State  government  for  the 
Commonwealth  of  Indiana  in  the  following  year 
gave  an  opportunity  for  the  establishment  of  a  sys- 
tem consonant  with  experience. 

The  confusion,  however,  was  confined  to  the 
organization  and  work  of  the  judicial  department. 
In  the  meantime  the  administration  of  the  govern- 
ment was  being  ably  conducted  by  Governor  Harri- 
son, and  the  rugged  persistence  and  ability  displayed 
during  his  later  career  revealed  themselves  in  his 
actions  during  these  years.  He  did  not  too  highly 
esteem  the  mere  powers  of  the  office,  as  St.  Clair  had 
done;  nor  did  he  so  punctiliously  guard  its  prerog- 
atives from  intrenchment.  By  keeping  in  close  touch 
with  the  people  he  avoided  much  of  the  trouble  and 
controversy  which  St.  Clair  had  undergone. 

The  system  of  local  government  having  been 
well  organized  by  the  Governor  and  Judges  and 
legislature  of  the  Northwest  Territory,  the  county 
officers  were  in  the  main  continued;  and  thus  the 
transition  from  one  jurisdiction  to  another  was 
achieved  with  scarcely  an  incident  to  disturb  the  ef- 
fectiveness of  the  system.  There  was  no  necessity 
for  transplanting  the  local  system  of  the  Northwest 
Territory,  for  it  continued  to  grow  in  the  same  soil 
and  under  practically  the  same  conditions.  Thus, 
with  many  precedents  to  guide  him,  with  much  of  the 
internal  organization  already  arranged  by  the  Code 
of  the  Northwest  Territory,  and  with  laws  provided 
from  the  same  source,  Governor  Harrison  had  much 


82        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

more  time  for  the  direction  of  external  relations, 
especially  for  the  conduct  of  Indian  affairs. 

The  act  which  created  the  Indiana  Territory  ex- 
pressly provided  that  the  duties  and  emoluments  of 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  should  be  united 
with  those  of  Governor.  But  the  National  govern- 
ment, recognizing  the  importance  of  the  work,  ap- 
pointed Governor  Harrison  special  and  sole  commis- 
sioner to  treat  with  the  northwestern  tribes,  with 
secret  powers  and  with  instructions  to  draw  any 
money  he  might  think  necessary  to  accomplish  the 
objects  entrusted  to  him.115  Under  this  power  he 
negotiated  with  remarkable  success  fourteen  treaties 
with  the  Indians116  and  extinguished  the  Indian  title 
to  millions  of  acres  of  land  at  a  very  small  cost.117 

These  Indian  cessions  were  of  great  importance 
as  they  opened  up  large  tracts  of  land  for  settlement, 
and,  as  Jefferson  pointed  out  in  his  message  to  Con- 
gress, were  of  "strategic  value  in  case  of  war'*,  be- 
cause "every  new  purchase  of  Indian  lands  was 
equivalent  to  providing  a  new  army"  for  the  pro- 
tection of  settlers  and  for  reducing  the  hostile 
country.118  Indeed,  the  relations  with  the  Indians 
engaged  the  greater  share  of  Governor  Harrison's 
time  and  attention,  and  he  was  almost  constantly 
busied  in  conducting  expeditions,  making  treaties, 
purchasing  land,  or  acting  as  mediator  in  settling 
the  troublesome  differences  between  the  tribes.119 
The  task  of  maintaining  peace  among  the  warlike 
savages  was  a  very  exacting  and  delicate  one,  and 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA         83 

the  efficiency  with  which  he  discharged  this  often 
onerous  and  dangerous  duty  and  the  ability  with 
which  he  conducted  his  Indian  campaigns  gave  Har- 
rison a  National  reputation. 

Another  duty  which  at  first  bore  heavily  upon 
Governor  Harrison  was  the  settlement  of  the  many 
questions  concerning  conflicting  claims  and  titles  to 
the  public  lands.  Harrison  fell  heir  to  most  of  the 
difficulties  which  St.  Glair  had  experienced  with  these 
same  questions.120  The  Governor  had  the  power  to 
confirm  grants  already  made,  but  a  careful  investiga- 
tion was  necessary  to  guard  against  fraud.  The 
adjustment  of  claims  was  of  necessity  so  slow,  and 
fraud  and  imposition  were  so  generally  practiced 
upon  the  Governor,  that  in  1804  Congress  passed  a 
sweeping  law  establishing  land  offices  at  Detroit, 
Vincennes,  and  Kaskaskia,  and  appointing  a  Register 
and  a  Receiver  of  Public  Moneys  for  each.121  This 
act  required  all  claimants  to  land  by  virtue  of  any 
grant  from  the  French,  British,  or  United  States 
governments  to  record  their  claims  in  the  proper 
land  office,  or  upon  failure  to  do  so  they  would  be 
forever  barred  from  claiming  any  right  thereto.  The 
Registers  and  Receivers  were  appointed  commission- 
ers to  examine  claims,  receive  evidence,  and  ''decide 
thereon  according  to  justice  and  equity",  and  they 
were  to  submit  their  decisions  to  Congress  for  final 
approval.122 

The  establishment  of  land  offices  systematized 
the  process  of  establishing  claims  and  provided  a 


regular  machinery  for  effectively  dealing  with  dis- 
putes. Settlements  and  adjustments  could  be  ac- 
complished much  more  expeditiously  than  by  the 
overworked  Governor.  But  even  the  Commission- 
ers, with  added  powers,  found  the  task  a  difficult  one, 
and  their  report  in  1810  expressed  much  discourage- 
ment.123 

Acting  on  this  report  the  committee  of  the  House 
of  Eepresentatives,  which  had  under  consideration 
the  land  claims  in  the  District  of  Kaskaskia,  recom- 
mended that  the  Governor's  decisions  should  be  re- 
examined.  "It  ought  to  be  remarked,"  stated  the 
report  of  the  committee,  "to  show  the  necessity  of  a 
re-examination  of  these  claims,  as  well  as  to  do 
justice  to  the  Governors  who  made  the  confirmations, 
that  the  multifarious  duties  imposed  on  these  officers, 
in  their  capacity  of  Governor,  Indian  agent,  and,  in 
one  instance,  of  commander-in-chief,  did  not  allow 
them  the  time  necessary  for  the  full  investigation  of 
the  claims  presented  for  their  decision ;  and,  perhaps, 
unsuspicious  of  the  practices  of  fraud,  forgery,  and 
perjury  that  have  been  since  developed  by  the  in- 
vestigation of  the  commissioners,  they  may  not  have 
examined  the  claims  with  that  scrupulous  attention 
that  was  necessary  to  guard  the  public  property 
against  impositions. ' ' 124 

These  recommendations  were,  however,  not  then 
acted  upon  by  Congress ;  and  it  is  interesting  to  note 
that  in  1830  a  committee  of  the  Senate  advised  the 
acceptance  of  the  Governor's  grants  in  certain  cases, 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA        85 

on  the  ground  that  they  were  based  upon  better  evi- 
dence than  could  at  that  time  be  procured  by  the 
commissioners.125  At  all  events  it  was  almost  impos- 
sible to  reconcile  the  conflicting  claims  and  grants, 
and  although  the  new  Commissioners  may  have  un- 
covered more  fraud  and  chicanery  than  the  Governor 
had  succeeded  in  doing,  it  is  doubtful  whether  they 
produced  any  more  equitable  or  satisfactory  results. 

For  nearly  a  year  the  jurisdiction  of  Governor 
Harrison  was  extended  over  a  vast  area  by  an  act  of 
Congress  of  March  26,  1804.126  By  this  act  the 
District  of  Louisiana,  comprising  the  country  west 
of  the  Mississippi  and  north  of  the  thirty-third  par- 
allel, was  attached  to  the  Indiana  Territory  for  ad- 
ministrative purposes.  Under  this  arrangement  a 
number  of  laws  were  enacted,  and  an  effort  was  made 
to  administer  affairs  in  the  new  District.  But  the 
inhabitants  of  the  land  west  of  the  Mississippi  were 
opposed  to  this  "foreign"  government  on  general 
principles  and  they  protested  vigorously  against  it. 
The  result  was  that  on  March  3,  1805,  Congress 
passed  an  act  establishing  the  Territory  of  Louisiana 
with  its  own  government  and  officers.127  The  Gov- 
ernor and  Judges  of  the  Indiana  Territory  were  later 
given  three  hundred  dollars  each  as  "  compensation 
for  the  extra  services".128 

On  the  question  of  slavery,  which  was  one  of  the 
most  prominent  issues  throughout  the  history  of  the 
Indiana  Territory,  the  people  were  divided.  The 
Ordinance  of  1787  had  prohibited  slavery  in  the  Old 


86        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

Northwest,  but  during  the  early  years  of  the  Terri- 
torial government  in  Indiana  a  majority  of  the  in- 
habitants were  very  much  dissatisfied  with  this 
restriction,  as  was  shown  by  frequent  memorials  and 
petitions.129  Governor  Harrison  personally  seems 
to  have  favored  the  suspension  of  the  prohibiting 
clause.130  At  a  convention  held  at  Vincennes  in 
December,  1802,  over  which  Harrison  presided,  a 
memorial  was  sent  to  Congress  favoring  the  suspen- 
sion for  a  term  of  years  of  the  sixth  article  of  the 
Ordinance  which  prohibited  slavery.131  This  proposi- 
tion was  rejected,  however,  since  as  a  matter  of  fact 
Congress  uniformly  refused  such  petitions  on  the 
ground  that  they  were  contrary  to  the  Ordinance. 
Later  immigration  so  changed  the  sentiment  of  the 
Territory  that  it  became  very  strongly  anti- 
slavery.132 

In  1805  Governor  Harrison  became  convinced 
that  the  people  desired  an  advance  to  the  second 
stage  of  Territorial  government,  and  accordingly  he 
took  the  necessary  steps  to  call  an  election  of  Repre- 
sentatives to  a  general  assembly.  It  is  rather 
curious  that  a  legislature  was  not  demanded  at  an 
earlier  day,  but  the  explanation  is  doubtless  to  be 
found  in  Harrison's  conciliatory  policy.  In  fact 
there  seems  to  have  been  a  desire  on  the  part  of  a 
number  of  the  people  to  proceed  at  once  to  the  second 
stage  after  the  organization  of  the  Territory  in 
1800.  But  a  judicious  letter  by  the  Governor,  in 
which  he  called  attention  to  the  increased  burdens 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA        87 

which  such  a  step  would  entail,  had  a  deterrent  effect, 
and  there  was  very  little  further  agitation  of  the 
question  for  a  number  of  years.  Certain  political 
considerations  seem  to  have  influenced  the  Governor 
as  well  as  the  people  in  1805  when  the  government 
of  the  second  stage  was  inaugurated.133 

Another  interesting  illustration  of  the  power  of 
the  Territorial  Governor  occurred  in  the  year  1805. 
The  newly  elected  House  of  Representatives  had 
chosen  the  names  of  ten  residents  of  the  Territory 
from  whom  the  President  of  the  United  States  was 
to  select  five  to  form  the  Legislative  Council.  But 
President  Jefferson  waived  his  right  of  designation 
on  the  ground  that ' l  as  the  characters  were  unknown 
to  him,  it  would  be  substituting  chance  for  choice, 
were  he  to  name  the  five  councillors. ' '  Accordingly 
Governor  Harrison  was  authorized  to  make  the  se- 
lection and  return  the  names  to  the  President  for 
formal  appointment,  rejecting,  however,  ''land- 
jobbers,  dishonest  men,  and  those  who,  though  hon- 
est, might  suffer  themselves  to  be  warped  by  party 
prejudices."134  If  the  facts  concerning  the  appoint- 
ments had  been  known  they  doubtless  would  have 
caused  ill-feeling  toward  Harrison  on  the  part  of  the 
disappointed  candidates,  and  so  the  public  was  kept 
in  ignorance  of  the  Governor's  part  in  the  choice 
until  long  afterwards.135  The  incident  is  an  illustra- 
tion of  the  manner  in  which  the  National  government 
relied  upon  the  soundness  of  the  Governor's  judg- 
ment. 


88        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

The  remainder  of  the  civil  history  of  the  Indiana 
Territory  is  the  story  of  a  struggle  for  an  enlarge- 
ment of  the  rights  of  franchise,  and  of  political  con- 
tests in  which  Harrison  took  an  active  interest.  The 
pacification  of  the  Indians,  the  rapid  settlement  and 
cultivation  of  the  country,  and  the  special  advan- 
tages enjoyed  by  the  government  from  the  first 
made  the  advancement  of  the  Territory  unusually 
rapid  and  gave  an  added  stimulus  to  the  desire  for 
enlarged  political  opportunities.  By  memorials  to 
Congress  and  by  legislative  enactments  the  people 
strove  to  extend  the  right  of  suffrage.  Gradually 
the  property  qualification  of  voters  was  reduced 
until  finally  it  was  abolished  entirely.136  Likewise 
the  people  secured  the  right  of  electing  the  Terri- 
torial Delegate  to  Congress,  as  also  the  privilege  of 
choosing  the  members  of  the  Legislative  Council  — 
thus  doing  away  with  appointment  by  the  President 
of  the  United  States.137 

In  this  way  the  people  of  the  Indiana  Territory 
procured  a  greater  measure  of  democratic  govern- 
ment than  had  been  enjoyed  in  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tory, or  in  fact  than  fell  to  the  lot  of  some  of  the 
Territories  later  formed  under  the  Ordinance.  As 
has  been  seen,  Indiana,  while  still  a  part  of  the 
Northwest  Territory,  had  been  well  schooled  in  the 
preliminary  steps  of  government,  and  so  after  a 
comparatively  short  time  was  better  fitted  to  under- 
take some  of  the  duties  of  self-government  than  the 
experience  of  most  Territories  would  warrant  at  so 


89 


early  a  period  in  their  development.  Indiana  was 
thus  in  some  ways  a  rather  precocious  child  of  the 
Territorial  system  and  did  not,  perhaps,  stand  so 
much  in  need  of  the  fostering  care  and  guidance  of 
a  paternal  hand. 

The  War  of  1812  plunged  the  country  into  a 
conflict  for  which  there  was  not  adequate  prepara- 
tion ;  and  since  the  northern  border  was  the  fighting 
line,  the  people  of  the  exposed  western  frontier  were 
compelled  to  bear  the  brunt  of  numerous  marauding 
expeditions.  It  is  not  within  the  province  of  these 
pages  to  consider  the  campaigns  of  William  Henry 
Harrison  or  to  describe  the  part  played  by  the  people 
of  the  Indiana  Territory  in  the  War  of  1812.138  In 
fact,  during  that  war,  Harrison  was  the  representa- 
tive of  the  entire  country  and  was  fighting  the 
battles  of  the  Nation.  His  duties  as  General  trans- 
cended those  of  the  governorship,  and  although  he 
took  steps  to  protect  his  own  Territory  his  activities 
during  this  period  were  of  a  far  broader  significance. 

Military  duties  now  so  engrossed  the  attention 
of  General  Harrison  that  in  February,  1813,  Presi- 
dent Madison  nominated  Thomas  Posey  for  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Territory.139  For  two  years  while 
Harrison  had,  indeed,  been  almost  constantly  in  the 
field  the  gubernatorial  functions  had  been  exercised 
by  Secretary  Gibson.  Believed  of  the  routine  work  of 
the  civil  office  by  the  appointment  of  Posey,  General 
Harrison,  now  in  charge  of  the  Northwestern  Army, 


90       GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

was  enabled  to  concentrate  his  energy  upon  the  vig- 
orous prosecution  of  the  war. 

The  character  of  the  Indiana  Territory  was  fully 
formed  by  this  time,  and  the  distinctive  features  of 
its  growth  and  development  were  fixed  —  the  person- 
ality of  Governor  Harrison  having  been  stamped 
upon  the  institutions  of  the  Territory.  The  few 
years  of  Territorial  existence  that  remained  under 
Governor  Posey  were  mainly  occupied  in  preparing 
for  the  State  government  that  was  soon  to  be  estab- 
lished. The  real  work  of  the  Territorial  period  had 
been  done  by  Governor  Harrison. 

Indiana  had  grown  rapidly  in  population.  With 
4,875  inhabitants  in  1800,  it  had  increased  to  24,520 
in  1810 ;  and  with  the  subsiding  of  hostilities  and  the 
lessening  of  danger  on  the  frontier  in  1814  the  tide 
of  immigration  rose  rapidly  until  in  1816  the  popula- 
tion was  63,897.140  The  strides  the  Territory  was 
making  in  population  and  in  general  development 
gave  it  strong  claims  for  statehood ;  and  on  April  19, 
1816,  Congress  passed  an  act  enabling  the  inhabit- 
ants to  form  a  constitution  and  organize  a  State 
government.141  Pursuant  thereto  delegates  were 
elected  to  a  constitutional  convention  which  met  at 
Corydon  (then  the  Territorial  capital)  June  10  to 
29,  181 6,142  and  drew  up  a  constitution  which  was 
duly  approved  by  Congress  on  December  11,  1816.143 
Thus  Indiana  became  one  of  the  States  of  the  Amer- 
ican Union. 

Governor  Harrison's  administration  may  have 


GOVERNOR  HARRISON  AND  INDIANA        91 

been  less  strenuous  than  St.  Glair's  from  a  strictly 
governmental  standpoint,  but  it  was  more  efficient. 
Harrison  made  himself  a  part  of  the  Territory, 
fought  its  battles  and  administered  its  government 
—  always  keeping  in  mind  the  safety  and  interest  of 
the  people  as  a  whole.  He  was  too  much  of  a  soldier 
to  forget  that  his  real  strength  lay  in  the  man  who 
carried  a  gun,  and  too  much  of  a  politician  to  over- 
look the  power  of  a  vote.  William  Henry  Harrison 
was  a  good  leader,  and  his  influence  gave  saneness 
and  self-reliance  to  the  institutional  development  of 
the  Indiana  Territory. 


VII 

GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  THE  ILLINOIS 
TERRITORY 

When  Congress  in  1805  detached  all  that  part  of 
the  Indiana  Territory  north  and  east  of  the  southern 
extreme  of  Lake  Michigan  and  called  it  the  Terri- 
tory of  Michigan 144  there  still  remained  a  vast  area 
spreading  from  the  Ohio  State  line  to  the  Mississippi 
River  and  extending  northward  to  the  Canadian 
border.  Much  of  this  region  was  wild  and  uninhab- 
ited, peopled  only  by  traders  and  trappers  or  roving 
Indians. 

The  main  settlements  were  near  Vincennes, 
along  the  Ohio  and  Wabash  rivers,  and  in  the  vicinity 
of  Kaskaskia.145  These  western  settlements  had 
been  established  principally  by  the  French  coming 
down  from  the  north,  and  the  people  still  found  one 
of  their  most  natural  avenues  of  supply  through  the 
lakes  and  rivers  to  the  northward.  Physiographic 
conditions  tended  to  create  a  community  of  interest 
among  the  people  of  the  Illinois  country  which  grad- 
ually developed  into  a  sort  of  independence.  More- 
over, on  account  of  their  isolation  they  were  politi- 
cally somewhat  neglected.  Courts  met  but  seldom, 
and  the  local  officers  were  widely  scattered  and  felt 
only  an  indifferent  responsibility. 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS         93 

Isolation  and  the  difficulties  of  administration, 
together  with  the  desire  for  definite  political  privi- 
leges, soon  prompted  an  agitation  for  a  division  into 
a  separate  Territory.  Memorials  were  sent  to  Con- 
gress,146 and  the  arguments  upon  the  question  be- 
came increasingly  animated  until  the  matter  was 
taken  up  by  the  legislature  of  the  Indiana  Territory 
where  the  contention  became  more  and  more  intense. 
Many  of  the  people  of  Indiana  opposed  the  division 
because  it  would  increase  the  local  taxation,  while 
others  objected  because  of  the  change  in  the  center 
of  influence  that  would  result  from  the  change  in 
boundaries.  Even  in  the  Illinois  country  there  was 
an  anti-separationist  faction. 

The  _storm  broke  in  1808  at  the  time  of  the  elec- 
tion of  a  Delegate  to  Congress.  The  Illinois  mem- 
bers of  the  Territorial  legislature  of  Indiana  pro- 
cured from  one  of  the  candidates  a  promise,  guar- 
anteed by  his  bond,  to  secure  a  division  of  the  Ter- 
ritory if  elected.  Then  in  some  way  enough  pledges 
were  secured  so  that  with  the  aid  of  the  candidate's 
own  vote  he  was  elected.147  Excitement  ran  high, 
the  successful  candidate  was  hung  in  effigy,  and  one 
of  the  partisans  was  shot  and  killed  in  an  argument 
—  so  bitter  did  the  feeling  become.148  The  Delegate, 
however,  secured  the  establishment  of  the  Illinois 
Territory  and  discharged  his  bond,  but  "as  it  was 
doubtless  desirable  to  change  his  residence,  he  came 
home  with  the  commission  for  a  federal  judgeship 


94        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

of  the  new  territory  in  his  pocket  and  removed  to 
Illinois."149 

The  Illinois  Territory  was  set  off  by  Congress 
in  an  act  of  February  3, 1809,  the  provisions  of  which 
were  very  similar  to  those  of  the  act  forming  the 
Indiana  Territory.  It  provided  for  the  exercise  of 
the  same  powers  and  duties  by  the  Territorial  of- 
ficers, and  guaranteed  the  inhabitants  all  the  rights 
and  privileges  granted  by  the  Ordinance  of  1787. 
Profiting,  however,  by  experience  with  the  difficulties 
which  had  arisen  from  the  first  division  of  the  North- 
west Territory,  the  framers  of  this  act  included  ex- 
press provisions  for  the  disposition  of  pending  suits 
and  for  the  collection  of  taxes  due,  the  same  as  if  the 
Indiana  Territory  had  remained  undivided.150 

The  new  Illinois  Territory  comprised  all  the 
region  from  the  Wabash  Eiver  to  the  Mississippi, 
extending  northward  from  the  Ohio  Eiver  to  the 
Canadian  border.  It  was  an  isolated  strip  of  the 
frontier,  with  Kaskaskia  as  its  capital,  and  with 
practically  all  of  its  settlements  in  the  southern  part. 

In  June,  1809,  upon  the  recommendation  of 
Henry  Clay,151  President  Madison  appointed  Ninian 
Edwards,  Chief  Justice  of  Kentucky,  as  Governor  of 
the  Illinois  Territory.  Governor  Edwards  was  born 
in  Montgomery  County,  Maryland,  in  1775,  of 
wealthy  and  well  educated  parents.  He  was  given 
a  preparatory  education,  and  at  the  age  of  nineteen 
he  entered  college;  but,  becoming  imbued  with  the 
western  fever,  he  went  to  Kentucky  the  following 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS         95 

year  and  began  the  study  of  law.152  * '  Distinguished 
at  that  early  age  by  his  natural  gifts  and  education, 
as  well  as  by  his  popular  manners, ' '  says  Mr.  Wash- 
burne,  editor  of  the  Edwards  Papers,  "in  less  than 
one  year,  and  before  he  became  of  age,  he  was  elected 
to  the  Legislature  of  Kentucky  from  Nelson  Co.; 
and  so  satisfactorily  did  he  discharge  the  duties  of 
that  position,  that  he  was  reflected  to  the  same  office 
the  subsequent  year.  This  was  before  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  and  while  yet  a  student  at  law. ' ' 153 
In  1798  he  received  his  license  to  practice  law,154  and 
from  that  time  on  his  promotion  was  rapid.  He 
soon  acquired  a  large  practice,  and  was  made  Judge 
of  the  Superior  Court,  and  then  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Court  of  Appeals  of  Kentucky. 

A  writer  who  knew  Governor  Edwards  said  of 
him  that  "He  was  a  bold,  rather  than  a  prudent, 
politician  —  unwavering  and  untiring  in  the  pursuit 
of  his  object.  From  an  intimate,  acquaintance  I  can 
say,  that  in  the  main,  his  views  were  honest,  and  that 
he  desired  the  best  interests  of  the  people.  His 
personal  appearance  (for  he  was  a  gentleman  of  the 
old  school)  was  remarkably  prepossessing,  his  man- 
ners polished,  and  his  address  attractive.  In  private 
life  he  was  an  enterprising  citizen,  an  honest  man, 
and  kind  and  attentive  to  the  poor  and  deserv- 
ing."155 

The  new  Governor  was  in  fact  well  fitted  for  the 
position.  Although  he  lacked  St.  Clair's  experience 
in  governmental  affairs  and  Harrison's  military 


96        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

training,  yet  as  a  lawyer  and  judge  he  had  acquired 
a  power  of  analyzing  and  dealing  with  complicated 
problems  which  stood  him  in  good  stead  as  the  chief 
executive  of  a  new  country.  Dignified  in  appear- 
ance and  courteous  in  manner,  sincere  and  unaffect- 
ed, he  seems  to  have  won  almost  universal  respect. 
He  was  a  persevering  worker  and  was  exact  in  the 
discharge  of  every  duty.  Besides  being  Governor, 
he  was  ex-officio  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs 
and  Superintendent  of  the  United  States  Saline. 
He  was  also  largely  interested  in  land  speculation 
and  in  extensive  commercial  transactions.  In  regard 
to  these  latter  activities,  it  is  said  that  "He  estab- 
lished saw  and  grist  mills,  and  stores  in  Kaskaskia, 
Belleville,  Carlisle,  Alton,  and  Springfield  in  Illinois, 
and  at  St.  Louis,  Chariton,  and  Franklin  in  Missouri ; 
he  gave  them  his  personal  attention  so  far  as  was 
consistent  with  his  official  duties,  himself  purchasing 
the  immense  stocks  of  goods  required." 156 

He  seemed  at  times,  when  affairs  of  importance 
pressed  upon  him,  inclined  to  unnecessary  solicitude 
and  anxiety,157  which  may  perhaps  be  attributable  to 
the  perturbed  character  of  the  times  and  to  the  diffi- 
cult position  in  which  he  was  placed.  But  the  con- 
stant reiteration  of  his  fears  for  the  safety  of  the 
Territory,  though  doubtless  justified  by  actual  con- 
ditions, leaves  the  impression  of  uneasiness  of  mind. 
This  does  not  mean,  however,  that  Governor  Ed- 
wards was  of  a  vacillating  temperament  or  lacked 
the  courage  of  his  convictions,  for  the  reverse  is  true. 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS        97 

He  was,  indeed,  energetic  and  decisive  above  all 
things,  and  as  the  events  of  his  administration  show, 
resolutely  carried  out  the  policies  upon  which  he  had 
determined.  He  did  not  exhibit  the  scrupulous  con- 
scientiousness of  St.  Clair,  nor  even  as  fine  a  sense 
of  duty  as  Governor  Harrison,158  but  he  was  honest 
and  fearless  in  the  performance  of  what  he  consid- 
ered his  duty. 

Nathaniel  Pope  was  appointed  Secretary  of  the 
Illinois  Territory  on  March  7,  1809,159  and  on  April 
28  (Governor  Edwards  not  having  arrived)  by  pro- 
clamation he  divided  the  Territory  into  two  counties, 
St.  Clair  and  Randolph,  "for  the  prevention  of 
crimes  and  injuries  and  for  the  execution  of  process 
civil  and  criminal  within  the  Territory".160  As 
Acting  Governor,  Pope  from  time  to  time  issued  com- 
missions to  justices  of  the  peace,  and  to  temporary 
military  and  county  officers ;  but  all  of  these  appoint- 
ments were  to  be  valid  only  "during  the  pleasure  of 
the  Governor  for  the  time  being. ' ' 161  It  was  not  until 
June  11,  1809,  that  Governor  Edwards  took  the  oath 
of  office  before  Thomas  Todd,  Associate  Justice  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  and  began  his  administration  of 
the  Territory.162 

Governor  Edwards  had  scarcely  set  foot  in  the 
Territory  before  he  was  confronted  with  a  situation 
which  called  for  the  utmost  tact.  The  bitter  animos- 
ities kindled  by  the  fight  for  a  division  from  Indiana 
still  burned  in  the  minds  of  the  people,  and  the 
prospect  of  appointments  under  the  new  Governor 


98        GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

fanned  the  flames.  Upon  his  arrival  at  Kaskaskia 
the  Governor  was  welcomed  by  a  deputation  of  citi- 
zens of  Eandolph  County  in  an  address  of  felicita- 
tion. 

But  even  on  this  occasion  partisan  motives  ap- 
peared, for  in  the  course  of  the  address  the  delegates 
stated  that  they  hoped  the  Governor  would  "take 
into  consideration  that  the  majority,  whose  incessant 
exertions  effectuated  a  division  of  the  Territory, 
have  a  claim  on  your  excellency  for  the  calumnies, 
indignities  and  other  enormities  which  those  who  op- 
posed that  measure  never  ceased  to  heap  upon  the 
friends  and  advocates  of  the  present  system  of  our 
government.  In  announcing  these  truths  ...  we 
derive  great  consolation  from  a  firm  belief  that  your 
excellency  will  gratify  the  virtuous  majority,  to 
whose  patriotic  exertions  the  citizens  are  indebted 
for  a  government  of  their  choice,  and  your  excellency 
your  high  station,  with  that  honorable  indemnity 
which  is  in  your  gift,  and  which  would  be  considered 
by  them  as  a  remuneration  for  all  those  indignities 
and  a  pledge  of  their  future  support  to  your  admin- 
istration. ' ' 

The  Governor,  however,  was  too  discreet  to  be 
drawn  into  the  quarrel,  and  his  reply  was  as  fearless 
as  it  was  impartial.  "An  office  is  a  trust",  he  said, 
"deposited  in  the  hands  of  the  individual,  who  holds 
it  not  for  his  individual  benefit  and  advantage,  but 
for  the  public  good ;  and  in  all  appointments  by  me 
the  public  interest,  and  not  a  system  of  favoritism, 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS         99 

shall  be  my  governing  principle.  A  partisan  I  can 
not  and  will  not  be. ' ' 163 

One  faction  urged  him  not  to  appoint  as  militia 
officers  any  persons  who  had  ever  opposed  the  di- 
vision of  the  Territory,  while  another  class  proposed 
that  all  of  the  old  officers  be  re-appointed.  Some 
advised  changes  in  some  of  the  offices,  while  retain- 
ing the  occupants  of  others.  As  the  Governor  was 
a  stranger  to  these  citizens  and  was  as  yet  wholly 
dependent  upon  their  information,  he  became  greatly 
embarrassed  "by  representations  diametrically  op- 
posite to  each  other  proceeding  from  sources  appar- 
ently equally  respectable. ' ' 164 

This  was  indeed  a  dilemma ;  for  in  the  state  of 
public  excitement  any  appointments  that  he  might 
make  would  provoke  hostility.  But  Governor  Ed- 
wards was  equal  to  the  emergency.  "Revolving  all 
these  considerations  and  reflections  in  my  own 
mind,"  he  said,  "I  determined,  without  such  a  sug- 
gestion from  any  person  on  earth,  to  adopt  my  own 
plan,  which  was  that  the  companies  should  elect  the 
company  officers  and  that  those  should  elect  the  field 
officers.  .  .  .  By  my  plan  those  officers  who  were 
meritorious  would  be  most  likely  to  succeed;  those 
who  were  not  so  could  have  no  cause  for  complaint. 
...  I  am  not  afraid  to  consult  the  people;  and  I 
do  believe  if  in  any  case  of  militia  appointments  it 
is  proper  to  consider  their  wishes  it  is  in  an  exposed 
Territory  like  this,  where  the  danger  of  invasion 
renders  confidence  in  and  attachment  to  officers  so 


100      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

indispensable  to  the  service."165  Even  such  a  fair 
proposal  as  this  was  assailed  on  all  sides  and  attacks 
were  made  upon  the  Governor's  motives.  Edwards, 
however,  remained  firm,  "determined  to  risk  the 
whole  combined  opposition  of  both  parties  rather 
than  yield  myself  up  to  the  control  or  enlist  under 
the  banners  of  either."166 

Such  a  course  was  almost  unprecedented,  and  at 
the  time  its  wisdom  was  questioned  in  some  quar- 
ters;167 but  the  National  government  had  the  good 
sense  to  see  the  necessity  for  such  a  policy  of  con- 
ciliation and  the  plan  was  approved.168  The  people 
also,  in  time,  began  to  appreciate  the  reasonableness 
of  the  Governor's  proposition;  and  after  the  election 
of  officers  the  differences  disappeared  to  a  great  ex- 
tent. Indeed,  it  was  not  long  before  a  number  of  the 
people  asked  for  the  privilege  of  electing  their 
county  officers  in  the  same  way.169 

There  was  a  very  urgent  need  of  united  action 
on  the  part  of  the  Governor  and  the  people,  since  the 
Illinois  Territory  was  on  the  extreme  frontier,  sur- 
rounded by  rivers  and  lakes,  and  therefore  was  easy 
to  attack  but  difficult  to  defend.  The  people  were 
poor,  scattered,  and  ill  prepared  to  protect  them- 
selves. The  Indians  were  numerous  and  unremitting 
in  their  depredations  or  secret  hostility.  Further- 
more, the  English  in  Canada  were  inclined  to  en- 
courage dissatisfaction  among  the  Red  Men  and  to 
nurture  their  resentment  against  the  Americans. 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       101 

As  soon  as  Governor  Edwards  had  established 
the  civil  government  of  the  Territory  he  turned  his 
attention  to  the  needs  arising  from  its  exposed  con- 
dition. The  restlessness  of  the  Indians  and  the  fre- 
quent reports  of  their  depredations  impressed  him 
with  the  necessity  of  investigating  the  situation 
thoroughly.  He  employed  several  loyal  French 
traders  and  interpreters  who  were  well  acquainted 
with  the  Indians  and  who  went  out  among  the  tribes 
and  reported  actual  conditions  to  the  Governor. 

Edwards  also  had  several  councils  with  the  In- 
dians, and  held  frequent  interviews  with  their  chiefs. 
The  Indians  appeared  friendly  and  gave  assurances 
that  the  depredations  would  cease  and  that  they 
would  dwell  in  peace  with  their  American  brothers. 
But  the  Governor  was  not  misled.  As  a  result  of 
the  information  which  he  secured,  he  soon  became 
convinced  that  the  Illinois  Indians  were  organizing 
and  preparing  to  open  hostilities  upon  the  white 
settlements  when  an  opportune  time  should  arrive. 
The  voluminous  correspondence  of  Governor  Ed- 
wards and  his  many  letters  during  this  period  fur- 
nish ample  proof  that  he  realized  the  danger  and 
repeatedly  urged  the  necessity  of  protective  meas- 
ures.171 

A  militia  company  had  been  organized  in  St. 
Clair  County  before  the  Governor's  arrival;  and 
from  time  to  time  companies  were  formed  in  the 
various  settlements.  But  detached  companies  could 
not  cover  the  vast  region  of  the  Territory,  and  they 


102      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

were  practically  powerless  when  it  came  to  protect- 
ing the  isolated  and  widely  scattered  frontier  settle- 
ments which  were  in  fact  the  most  in  need  of  help. 
These  conditions  justified  the  anxiety  of  Governor 
Edwards,  and,  urged  on  by  the  repeated  appeals  of 
the  people,  he  continued  his  efforts  to  secure  assist- 
ance.172 

During  the  year  1810  the  Indians  continued  rest- 
less and  several  cases  of  murder  were  reported.173 
In  the  spring  and  summer  of  1811  depredations  were 
so  frequent  and  murders  so  numerous  that  the  people 
became  very  much  alarmed.  A  mass  meeting  of  the 
citizens  of  St.  Clair  County,  in  October,  1811,  drew 
up  a  memorial  to  the  Governor,  calling  attention  to 
the  grave  dangers  that  menaced  the  Territory,  ex- 
pressing confidence  in  the  Governor,  and  exhorting 
him,  as  the  constitutional  channel  between  the  people 
and  the  general  government,  to  secure  more  garri- 
sons and  more  military  supplies  for  the  better  pro- 
tection of  the  frontier.  A  memorial  to  be  forwarded 
to  the  President  of  the  United  States  was  also  en- 
closed.174 

The  Territory  itself,  under  the  direction  of  Gov- 
ernor Edwards,  raised  four  companies  of  mounted 
rangers  and  began  active  preparations  for  defense.175 
Block-houses  surrounded  by  strong  stockades  were 
erected  in  a  number  of  the  settlements,  and  at  other 
places  larger  forts  were  built.  The  block-houses 
were  built  of  logs,  one  story  and  a  half  high  and  with 
heavily  barred  doors.  They  were  well  supplied  with 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       103 

port-holes ;  and  the  upper  story  projected  somewhat 
over  the  first,  thus  allowing  ample  means  for  watch- 
ing the  movements  of  the  enemy.  The  stockades 
were  made  large  enough  to  accommodate  the  settlers 
of  the  vicinity  and  their  property.  Cabins  were  usu- 
ally built  within  the  enclosure  and  a  well  was  dug  to 
supply  water  in  case  of  siege.  The  forts  were  larger, 
being  a  series  of  block-houses  connected  by  stock- 
ades.176 These  frontier  posts  very  effectively  pro- 
tected the  settlers  who  with  their  stock  and  other 
belongings  sought  shelter  therein.  Nearly  all  of  the 
later  tragedies  were  enacted  at  isolated  settlements, 
or  where  scattered  settlers  braved  the  dangers  alone 
or  incautiously  traveled  from  place  to  place. 

The  dispatches  and  reports  which  came  to  the 
Governor  indicated  that  "The  Prophet",  a  talented 
Shawnee  leader,  was  carefully  planning  to  strike  the 
Illinois  settlements,  preparatory  to  an  attack  on  Vin- 
cennes  and  other  important  settlements,  and  that  the 
cooperation  of  various  other  tribes  was  expected.177 
Governor  Edwards,  seeing  that  the  Peoria  Lake  re- 
gion was  the  seat  of  most  of  the  trouble,  determined 
to  send  an  expedition  to  that  point  for  the  purpose 
of  over-aweing  the  Indians  and  also  for  the  capture 
if  possible  of  some  of  the  fugitive  Indian  murderers 
and  the  recovery  of  some  of  the  stolen  property. 
He  accordingly  commissioned  Captain  Samuel  Lev- 
ering, who  with  a  few  men  set  out  on  July  25, 1811. 

Upon  arrival  at  their  destination  Levering  and 
his  men  were  received  by  Gomo,  the  Pottawattamie 


104      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

Chief,  who  gave  them  assurances  that  the  murderers 
would  be  given  up  and  that  he  would  do  all  in  his 
power  to  restore  the  stolen  property.  At  one  of  the 
many  conferences  and  councils  which  were  held  with 
the  Indians  a  speech  of  Governor  Edwards  was  read, 
and  Gomo  and  Little  Chief  each  responded.  They 
were  profuse  in  their  promises ;  but  when  the  council 
adjourned  the  Captain  returned  without  any  prison- 
ers, and  it  was  later  learned  that  some  of  the  mur- 
derers were  sitting  in  the  very  council.178  The  guilty 
Indians,  having  thus  escaped  punishment,  became 
more  bold  and  troublesome  than  before. 

It  was  this  feature  of  Indian  diplomacy  that 
troubled  Governor  Edwards  more  than  any  other 
problem  connected  with  the  Indian  affairs.  A  firm 
and  just  administration  of  the  laws  was  absolutely 
essential  in  dealing  with  the  Indians.  Yet  when  a 
murder  was  committed  or  property  was  stolen  it  was 
next  to  impossible  to  identify  the  culprits  owing  to 
the  confusing  Indian  names,  the  constant  roving  of 
the  various  bands  of  Ked  Men,  and  the  savage  cun- 
ning with  which  the  deed  was  always  committed. 
The  difficulty  was  increased  by  the  fact  that  the 
Chiefs  were  usually  either  distinctly  hostile  to  the 
Americans  or  rendered  passive  by  the  fear  of  antag- 
onizing their  own  people.  Moreover,  since  the  In- 
dians were  rarely  brought  to  account  it  became  in- 
creasingly difficult  to  restrain  the  soldiers  and  set- 
tlers who  took  matters  in  their  own  hands  —  some- 
times wreaking  vengeance  upon  the  innocent  in  their 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       105 

fury  at  the  barbarous  practices  of  the  Bed  Men.179 
Meantime  the  Indian  barbarities  became  more  and 
more  frequent  and  were  a  constant  menace  to  the 
safety  of  the  people  of  the  country. 

Evidence  was  also  accumulating  in  abundance 
which  proved  that  the  English  were  doing  all  in  their 
power  to  encourage  hostility  towards  the  Americans ; 
while  by  extensive  gifts  of  supplies  and  trinkets,  and 
by  friendly  overtures  they  sought  to  attach  the  In- 
dians strongly  to  themselves.180  Indeed,  the  com- 
mittee appointed  by  the  House  of  Representatives 
to  investigate  the  conditions  on  the  frontier  reported 
on  June  13,  1812,  that  there  was  no  doubt  but  that 
the  British  were  furnishing  supplies  to  the  Indians, 
and  that  the  Indians  were  making  such  hostile 
preparations  that  it  was  necessary  to  proceed  at 
once  to  protect  the  frontiers  from  the  attack  with 
which  they  were  threatened.181 

It  was  expected  that  General  Harrison's  victory 
at  Tippecanoe  would  have  a  deterrent  effect  upon 
the  Indians,  but  it  was  in  reality  offset  by  the  influ- 
ence of  the  British  and  the  activities  of  the  Shawnee 
Prophet.  War  with  Great  Britain  now  seemed  in- 
evitable. Maiden  on  the  Canadian  border  was  the 
distributing  point  from  which  Indian  supplies  were 
given  out  and  from  which  the  British  influence  em- 
anated ;  and  the  country  of  the  Old  Northwest  became 
the  field  for  a  desperate  border  warfare. 

The  beginning  of  the  year  1812  found  both  sides 
making  preparations  for  the  struggle.  The  Indians, 


106      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

urged  on  by  the  British  and  aroused  by  the  eloquence 
of  the  Shawnee  Prophet  and  his  brother  Tecumseh, 
were  forming  an  extensive  confederation  of  the 
tribes  to  cooperate  against  the  Americans.  The 
Americans,  on  the  other  hand,  were  doing  what  they 
could  to  keep  the  tribes  friendly  and  to  prevent  fur- 
ther Indian  barbarities.  In  April,  1812,  Governor 
Edwards  made  another  effort  to  conciliate  the  In- 
dians by  inviting  a  number  of  the  most  influential 
chiefs  of  the  Pottawattamies,  Kickapoos,  Ottawas, 
and  Chippewas  to  meet  him  in  council  at  Cahokia. 
At  the  council  the  Governor  delivered  a  long  "talk", 
and  Gomo  made  reply  in  behalf  of  the  assembled 
chiefs.  He  complained  of  some  things  the  Amer- 
icans had  done,  but  said  the  punishment  the  Indians 
had  received  at  Tippecanoe  had  frightened  them; 
and  he  promised  that  his  people  would  never  join  the 
British  or  break  their  peace  with  the  Americans.182 

This  council,  like  the  others,  accomplished 
nothing ;  and  the  Indians  after  having  been  well  fed 
and  royally  entertained  returned  to  their  warlike 
preparations  very  well  satisfied  with  themselves. 
Governor  Edwards,  moreover,  was  well  aware  that 
the  Indians  were  carrying  on  a  deceptive  game,  for 
in  writing  to  Governor  Harrison  about  the  council 
he  declared  that  there  was  but  "little  dependence 
to  be  placed  on  their  professions ' ',  and  in  his  report 
to  the  National  government  he  expressed  the  same 
opinion  even  more  forcibly.183  Consequently  he  con- 
tinued to  urge  more  effective  means  of  protection; 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       107 

and  while  waiting  for  Congress  to  act  Ee  busied  him- 
self with  endeavors  to  strengthen  the  frontier  forces 
and  to  mitigate  the  horrors  of  Indian  barbarities. 

The  National  government  was  beginning  to  real- 
ize, what  Governor  Edwards  and  General  Harrison 
had  so  long  urged,  that  the  frontier  was  poorly 
guarded.  In  fact  the  War  Department  had  really 
done  very  little  for  frontier  protection  in  the  Terri- 
tories. The  Adjutant  General's  report  of  June  6, 
1812,  showed  that  the  following  number  of  regular 
soldiers  were  stationed  in  or  on  the  borders  of  the 
Illinois  Territory :  at  Fort  Massac,  35 ;  at  Fort  Mad- 
ison, 44 ;  at  Fort  Dearborn,  53 ;  and  at  Vincennes  and 
in  the  vicinity,  117;  while  the  arms  and  munitions 
were  hardly  more  than  were  needed  in  time  of 
peace.184 

Indeed,  the  Territory  would  have  fared  very 
badly  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  Territorial  militia, 
which  at  this  time  numbered  about  four  regiments 
and  consisted  mostly  of  mounted  rangers.  From  all 
reports  these  rangers  were  aggressive  and  tireless 
in  their  efforts  to  protect  the  settlements,  and  by 
their  efficient  service  materially  lessened  the  number 
of  Indian  outrages. 

On  June  18,  1812,  war  was  formally  declared 
with  Great  Britain.185  But  it  was  not  until  August 
that  the  first  severe  blows  fell,  when  the  terrible 
massacre  at  Fort  Dearborn186  gave  the  Indians  re- 
newed courage,  and  the  disgraceful  capitulation  of 
Hull  at  Detroit  imperiled  the  northern  border. 


108      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

It  is  needless  in  this  connection  to  recite  the  well 
known  events  of  the  war.  The  campaigns  of  1812 
and  1813  were  disastrous.  In  1814,  the  bloodiest 
year  of  the  war,  the  Americans  gained  but  little  ad- 
vantage. During  all  this  time  the  people  of  the 
western  Territories  were  practically  left  to  protect 
themselves  as  best  they  could  against  British  ma- 
rauding parties  and  Indian  raids.  Governor  Ed- 
wards on  several  occasions  during  the  war  found  it 
necessary  to  remonstrate  against  the  concentration 
of  troops  in  Indiana,  where  they  were  not  so  much 
needed,  because  the  population  was  larger  and  hence 
able  to  put  a  larger  force  of  volunteers  in  the  field, 
and  because  troops  from  the  eastern  States  could  be 
brought  into  Indiana  on  shorter  notice.187 

Another  difficulty  lay  in  the  fact  that  it  was  im- 
possible to  get  troops  from  Kentucky.  Governor 
Edwards  had  been  authorized  by  the  Secretary  of 
War  to  call  upon  the  Governor  of  Kentucky  for  as- 
sistance; and  Governor  Scott  and  later  Governor 
Shelby  of  Kentucky  had  promised  troops.  Yet  on 
one  occasion  Edwards  publicly  stated  that  "Not  a 
man  has  arrived"  and  even  Colonel  Eussell's  force 
had  been  called  off  to  Vincennes,  ' '  leaving  us  to  shift 
for  ourselves,  without  the  aid  of  a  single  man  who 
has  not  been  raised  in  the  Territory. ' ' 188 

At  times  Edwards  also  took  issue  with  General 
Harrison  on  the  plan  of  campaign.  In  the  fall  of 
1812,  when  it  was  Harrison's  plan  to  prosecute  a 
campaign  to  aid  Hull,  Governor  Edwards  vigorously 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       109 

opposed  it  on  the  ground  that  it  would  leave  the 
frontier  exposed.189  Throughout  the  war  the  Gov- 
ernor devoted  himself  almost  entirely  to  measures 
for  the  safety  of  his  Territory  —  the  one  aim  that 
seemed  uppermost  in  his  mind.  And  whenever  he 
became  convinced  that  pacific  means  were  of  no 
avail,  he  personally  conducted  expeditions  against 
the  Indian  villages  to  stamp  out  the  cause  of  the 
frontier  troubles.190 

The  chief  events  in  the  Illinois  country  preced- 
ing the  declaration  of  war  in  1812  have  been  consid- 
ered at  some  length  as  showing  the  trend  of  Illinois 
Territorial  history  during  this  period.  Nor  is  it 
necessary  to  continue  this  phase  of  the  subject  fur- 
ther, since  the  events  already  described  are  charac- 
teristic of  the  whole  period. 

These  were  indeed  turbulent  times  on  the  Illi- 
nois frontier.  There  could  be  little  civil  develop- 
ment in  the  Territory  when  the  whole  attention  of 
the  administration  was  concentrated  upon  the  effort 
to  effectually  protect  the  inhabitants.  Immigration 
was  at  a  standstill  during  the  war,  and  the  continual 
danger  had  a  deterrent  effect  upon  all  forms  of  im- 
provement. 

The  feeling  of  insecurity  was  increased  by  the 
fact  that  the  land  office  officials  were  slow  in  making 
adjustments.  Many  bitter  enemies  were  made  by 
their  wholesale  rejection  of  claims  and  their  indis- 
criminate accusations  of  forgery  and  perjury.19 
The  settlers  dared  not  make  improvements;  and  in 


110      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

the  general  insecurity  of  titles  few  bought  land  and 
few  extensive  settlements  were  made.  Governor  Ed- 
wards at  various  times  urged  the  passage  of  laws 
giving  the  right  of  preemption  to  actual  settlers  and 
affording  the  settlers  better  opportunities  at  the  land 
sales.192  In  1813  the  right  of  preemption  was  grant- 
ed,193 thus  removing  one  of  the  greatest  barriers  to 
the  development  of  the  western  country. 

In  the  midst  of  the  ravages  of  war  the  civil  ad- 
ministration of  the  Territory  was  carried  on  as  uni- 
formly as  possible.  When  the  Territory  was  first 
separated  from  Indiana,  the  Governor  and  Judges 
had  met  and  reenacted  the  Indiana  laws,  and  these 
stood  with  few  changes  until  the  election  of  a  legis- 
lature.194 

Illinois  naturally  inherited  the  county  system 
of  local  government,  which  through  southern  and 
middle  State  influences  had  prevailed  in  the  North- 
west Territory  and  in  Indiana.  In  fact  most  of  the 
people  in  southern  Illinois  during  Territorial  days 
were  from  the  South  or  had  come  under  south- 
ern influence.195  Indiana  had  definitely  established 
counties  by  law  in  1807,196  and  this  law  was  reenacted 
by  the  Illinois  Territorial  legislature  in  1812,197  thus 
giving  legal  sanction  to  a  system  that  had  been  tacit- 
ly followed  since  the  organization  of  the  Territory. 
This  system  of  local  government  remained  un- 
changed until  the  preponderance  of  New  Englanders 
succeeded,  some  time  after  the  formation  of  the  State 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       111 

government,  in  forcing  a  recognition  of  the  town 
meeting.198 

Under  the  law  creating  the  Illinois  Territory 
the  Governor  was  empowered  to  call  an  election  for 
members  of  a  legislature  at  any  time  when  he  be- 
came convinced  that  a  majority  of  the  freeholders 
desired  it.199  The  peculiar  conditions  existing  in  the 
Territory,  however,  caused  Governor  Edwards  to 
hesitate  before  calling  such  an  election.  Owing  to 
the  land  difficulties  and  the  delay  in  the  sales  few 
settlers  had  titles  to  their  lands.  They  were  ' '  squat- 
ters ' '  and  had  in  fact  settled  illegally  upon  the  land, 
no  matter  how  good  citizens  they  were  or  whether 
they  had  made  improvements  in  good  faith  or  not. 
On  several  occasions  the  Governor  pointed  out  the 
fact  that  of  the  respectable  and  bona  fide  farmers 
who  settled  in  the  Territory  not  more  than  one-tenth, 
were  freeholders.200  This  would  put  into  the  hands 
of  a  very  small  minority  the  power  to  decide  whether 
or  not  there  should  be  a  change  to  the  second  stage 
of  government  and  to  dictate  the  selection  of  the 
members  of  the  assembly.  Thus  the  property  quali- 
fication became  a  serious  restriction  of  the  right  of 
suffrage. 

Moreover,  Governor  Edwards  stated  that  he  did 
not  know  of  a  single  person  qualified  to  act  as  Repre- 
sentative by  possessing  the  necessary  freehold  of 
two  hundred  acres  of  land  required  by  the  Ordinance, 
nor  were  there  in  his  opinion  more  than  three  or  four 
who  had  a  freehold  of  fifty  acres  qualifying  them  to 


112      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

vote.201  Although  he  hesitated  for  these  reasons  to 
call  an  election,  Edwards  nevertheless  felt  the  neces- 
sity of  having  a  Delegate  in  Congress  to  plead  the 
cause  of  the  Territory  and  look  after  its  interests. 
In  St.  Glair's  time  the  recommendations  of  the  Gov- 
ernor had  usually  been  sufficient,  but  now  with  the 
increasing  business  of  Congress  and  the  distracting 
events  of  a  great  war  more  direct  influence  was  neces- 
sary. This  need  for  a  Territorial  Delegate  illus- 
trates the  growth  of  a  new  idea.  The  Delegate  had 
always  been  an  important  factor,  but  now  the  Gov- 
ernor had  come  to  look  upon  him  as  necessary  in 
order  to  obtain  a  just  measure  of  rights  for  the  Ter- 
ritory. Consequently,  Edwards  advocated  the  ex- 
tension of  suffrage  to  all  citizens,  regardless  of 
property  qualifications,  and  the  election  of  the  Dele- 
gate directly  by  the  people  instead  of  by  the  legis- 
lature.202 

Soon  afterwards  Congress  passed  an  act  extend- 
ing the  right  of  suffrage  to  all  white  male  persons 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  who  had  paid  a  Territorial 
tax  and  lived  one  year  within  the  Territory.  Fur- 
thermore, the  people  were  given  the  right  to  vote  not 
only  for  Representatives,  but  also  for  members  of 
the  Legislative  Council  and  Delegate  to  Congress.203 
Thus  at  one  stroke  many  obstacles  to  Territorial  de- 
velopment were  removed,  and  the  people  of  the 
Illinois  Territory  gained  the  same  privileges  as  had 
previously  been  extended  to  the  inhabitants  of  In- 
diana. Governor  Edwards  was  largely  instrumental 


in  securing  these  rights  for  the  people,  even  though 
his  own  power  was  curtailed  to  a  certain  extent 
thereby,  and  the  incident  is  an  example  of  his  self- 
sacrificing  loyalty  to  the  Territory. 

Edwards  had  for  some  time  been  convinced  that 
the  people  desired  the  change  to  the  second  grade  of 
government,  and  now  that  the  objections  to  such  a 
change  had  been  overcome,  he  decided  to  submit  the 
question  to  a  vote  of  the  people.  The  result  showed 
that  public  sentiment  was  overwhelmingly  in  favor 
of  entering  upon  the  second  stage,204  and  consequent- 
ly an  election  was  called  at  which  a  Delegate  to  Con- 
gress and  members  of  the  legislature  were  duly 
elected. 

On  November  25,  1812,  the  new  legislature  con- 
vened at  Kaskaskia  and  proceeded  at  once  to  busi- 
ness.205 In  the  first  place  they  reenacted  such  laws 
of  Indiana  as  had  not  been  repealed  by  Governor  Ed- 
wards and  the  Judges  of  the  Illinois  Territory  at  an 
earlier  date.  Then  followed  laws  of  every  descrip- 
tion. In  the  criminal  code  there  were  continued  the 
harsh  measures  of  the  Indiana  Territory  —  and  if 
anything,  punishments  were  made  even  more  severe. 
Branding  a  letter  "  T "  with  a  red  hot  iron  upon  the 
hand  was  the  penalty  for  a  second  conviction  of  hav- 
ing altered  or  defaced  the  brands  on  domestic  ani- 
mals. Confinement  in  the  stocks  and  the  pillory, 
fines  and  imprisonment,  and  whipping  on  the  naked 
back  from  ten  to  five  hundred  lashes  according  to  the 
offence,  were  among  the  penalties  provided.206 


114      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

An  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  legislature  in  1814 
to  reorganize  the  judiciary  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
materially  modify  the  provisions  of  the  Ordinance 
gave  rise  to  a  friendly  controversy  between  the  Gov- 
ernor and  the  Judges.  The  power  of  the  legislature 
to  pass  such  a  law  was  questioned.  At  the  request 
of  the  assembly  the  Judges  prepared  an  opinion  stat- 
ing emphatically  that  "the  court  established  by  the 
ordinance  cannot  be  subject  to  the  revision  or  con- 
trol of  any  tribunal  established  by  the  Territorial 
Legislature".207  The  views  of  the  Governor  were 
also  requested,  and  he  prepared  an  answer  in  which 
he  contended  that  the  legislature  had  full  power  to 
provide  for  the  affairs  of  the  Territory  and  to  estab- 
lish a  general  judicial  system.208  Being  still  in 
doubt,  however,  the  legislature  decided  to  leave  the 
matter  to  Congress  with  a  petition  that  the  law  be 
declared  legal  "in  order  to  remove  any  future  or  ex- 
isting difficulties  that  may  arise  between  the  Judges 
and  the  Legislature."209  Such  action  was  accord- 
ingly taken  by  Congress ;  21°  and  it  is  to  be  presumed 
that  both  of  the  contending  parties  believed  that  the 
validity  of  their  arguments  was  amply  vindicated. 
This  small  controversy  indicates  the  cordial  relations 
which  existed  between  Governor  Edwards  and  the 
other  branches  of  the  Territorial  government. 

The  greatest  difficulty  which  the  Governor  had 
to  face  was  the  slowness  and  indifference  of  the  Na- 
tional government.  Time  and  again  his  plans  for 
the  Territory  were  thwarted  by  the  inaction  of 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       115 

officials  in  the  East  who  could  seldom  appreciate  the 
real  situation  in  the  West.  His  letters  and  papers 
are  full  of  appeals  for  help  to  meet  the  pressing 
needs  of  the  Territory ;  and  although  his  persistence 
was  often  rewarded  in  the  end,  many  wise  plans  were 
defeated  by  the  delay  and  neglect  of  those  in  author- 
ity.211 The  war  and  the  consequent  necessity  of  a 
system  of  military  discipline  tended  toward  require- 
ments of  stricter  accountability  and  a  more  uniform 
reliance  on  orders  direct  from  headquarters.  St. 
Glair  and  Harrison  had  been  given  a  much  freer  rein 
at  first,  but  the  web  of  officialism  and  red-tape  had 
now  begun  to  spread  out  and  around  the  Territorial 
Governor. 

Besides  the  duties  of  the  governorship,  Edwards 
performed  various  other  functions  which  deserve 
some  mention.  As  Superintendent  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs his  activities  did  not  vary  greatly  from  those 
of  St.  Clair  or  Harrison.  The  records  show  that 
Governor  Edwards  negotiated  nineteen  Indian  trea- 
ties during  his  administration,212  and  other  incidents 
in  his  dealings  with  the  Indians  have  already  been 
related.  He  was  also  Superintendent  of  the  United 
States  Saline;  the  general  government  having  re- 
tained control  of  the  salt  works  in  Illinois.  The 
Governor's  duties  as  Superintendent  consisted  of 
making  contracts  for  leasing  the  salt  works,  collect- 
ing the  rent  in  salt,  and  providing  for  the  shipment 
and  sale  of  the  government's  share.  That  these 
duties  were  burdensome  as  well  as  important  is 


116      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

shown  in  the  number  of  letters  on  this  subject  in  the 
correspondence  of  Governor  Edwards.213 

After  the  close  of  the  war  the  tide  of  immigra- 
tion flowed  steadily  into  Illinois.  At  first  the  settlers 
were  mostly  from  the  South,  and  during  the  greater 
part  of  the  Territorial  period  Illinois  was  largely  in- 
fluenced by  southerners.  But  towards  the  last  years 
of  the  period  the  northern  element  began  to  increase 
until  it  changed  the  complexion  of  the  Territory, 
showing  itself  not  only  in  changes  in  local  govern- 
ment, but  also  in  finally  making  Illinois  a  free  in- 
stead of  a  slave  State. 

In  its  institutional  development  the  Illinois  Ter- 
ritory presents  few  novel  features.  Its  history  is 
very  largely  the  story  of  further  progress  along  lines 
already  begun  in  the  Northwest  Territory  and  the 
Indiana  Territory.  Indeed,  these  Territories  pre- 
sent a  consistent  and  continuous  course  of  govern- 
ment along  related  lines.  Governor  Edwards,  like 
his  predecessors,  was  the  dominating  influence.  He 
had  won  the  confidence  of  the  people  during  the  first 
years  of  his  administration  and  he  was  naturally  con- 
tinued in  office  until  the  admission  of  Illinois  as  a 
State  in  1818. 

Governor  Edwards  loved  Illinois,  and  every  act 
of  his  was  influenced  by  his  desire  to  build  up  the 
Territory.  For  him  the  office  of  Governor  meant  an 
opportunity  to  labor  and  plan  for  the  general  wel- 
fare. The  prerogatives  of  his  office  were  but  means 
to  an  end.  His  sincerity  and  industry  were  unques- 


GOVERNOR  EDWARDS  AND  ILLINOIS       117 

tioned ;  while  his  firmness  and  his  conciliatory  policy, 
together  with  his  deserved  popularity,  resulted  in 
harmony  among  the  various  elements  in  the  Terri- 
tory. Ninian  Edwards  had  become  so  closely  identi- 
fied with  the  Illinois  country  that  when  the  State  was 
admitted  in  1818 214  and  his  work  as  Territorial  Gov- 
ernor was  ended,  he  settled  down  to  a  life  of  larger 
service  for  the  Commonwealth. 


VIII 

GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  THE  TERRITORY  OF 
MICHIGAN 

With  the  formation  of  the  Territory  of  Michigan 
in  1805  a  new  line  of  western  development  was 
opened.  For  nearly  two  centuries  the  extreme 
Northwest  had  been  tributary  to  Canada  and  subject 
to  its  influence.  French  traders  and  trappers  had 
roamed  over  the  country,  devout  priests  had  endeav- 
ored repeatedly  to  christianize  the  aboriginal  tribes, 
and  some  attempts  had  been  made  at  settlement. 
After  Wolfe's  victory  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham, 
the  English  also  exerted  an  influence  over  this  region 
from  the  north,  until  the  Old  Northwest  was  wrested 
from  them  by  the  conquest  of  George  Rogers  Clark. 

The  change  in  political  allegiance,  however,  did 
not  alter  the  social  and  racial  conditions  on  the 
northern  border.  The  hauling  down  of  a  flag  may 
determine  the  question  of  sovereignty ;  but  the  social 
life  of  the  people,  their  inherent  political  ideas  and 
customs,  their  racial  tendencies,  and  the  general  con- 
ditions by  which  they  are  environed  are  not  so  easily 
eradicated  or  overcome.  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois, 
being  in  the  natural  line  of  the  westward  movement, 
had  been  settled  rapidly  by  Americans  and  had 
developed  characteristic  Anglo-Saxon  institutions 


GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  MICHIGAN          119 

which  soon  led  to  statehood.  But  Michigan,  cut  off 
by  the  lakes  and  other  physiographic  barriers,  had 
been  influenced  from  the  valley  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 
and  consequently  was  very  different  in  spirit  and 
development  from  the  country  along  the  Ohio. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  Michigan  when  it  be- 
gan its  Territorial  existence  in  1805.  Isolated  geo- 
graphically and  alien  by  natural  tendency,  it  had  a 
long  and  trying  history  before  it  became  genuinely 
American  and  ready  for  statehood. 

The  act  of  Congress  which  divided  the  Indiana 
Territory  provided  that  all  that  part  "  which  lies 
north  of  a  line  drawn  east  from  the  southerly  bend 
or  extreme  of  Lake  Michigan,  until  it  shall  intersect 
Lake  Erie,  and  east  of  a  line  drawn  from  the  said 
southerly  bend  through  the  middle  of  said  lake  to 
its  northern  extremity,  and  thence  due  north  to  the 
northern  boundary  of  the  United  States"  should 
constitute  the  Territory  of  Michigan.  It  was  enacted 
that  the  government  of  the  new  Territory  should  be 
in  all  respects  similar  to  that  provided  by  the  Ordi- 
nance of  1787,  and  that  the  inhabitants  should  enjoy 
all  the  rights  and  privileges  guaranteed  by  that 
Ordinance.  The  officers  were  to  have  the  same  pow- 
ers, duties,  and  compensation  as  provided  by  the  laws 
of  the  United  States  for  similar  offices  in  the  Indiana 
Territory.215  In  fact  the  Organic  Act  of  the  Terri- 
tory of  Michigan  was  practically  identical  with  the 
acts  establishing  the  Indiana  and  Illinois  Terri- 
tories. 


120      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

President  Jefferson  appointed  General  William 
Hull  of  Massachusetts  as  the  first  Governor  of  the 
new  Territory ;  and,  although  the  General  was  an  ac- 
complished gentleman,  a  competent  executive,  and  a 
man  of  extensive  and  favorable  reputation,  the  choice 
was  anything  but  fortunate.  As  Mr.  Cooley  has 
said,  "had  he  been  made  the  executive  of  a  staid  and 
orderly  commonwealth,  with  associates  in  govern- 
ment of  similar  characteristics,  his  administration 
might  have  been  altogether  popular  and  successful. 
But  in  Michigan  he  found  uncongenial  people  all 
about  him,  and  it  soon  appeared  that  he  was  some- 
what lacking  in  the  persistent  self-assertion  neces- 
sary to  make  the  rough  characters  of  a  backwoods 
settlement  recognize  and  accept  the  fact  that  within 
the  proper  limits  of  his  authority  he  proposed  to  be 
and  would  be  ruler  and  master." 216 

Unfortunately  the  Chief  Justice,  Augustus  B. 
Woodward,  was  diametrically  the  opposite  of  the 
Governor,  both  in  disposition  and  methods,  and  he 
was  intolerant  of  opposition.  But  in  spite  of  the 
fact  that  he  was  somewhat  eccentric,  Woodward  was 
an  exceptionally  able  lawyer,  and  the  brunt  of  the 
labor  in  framing  the  laws  fell  upon  him.217  Indeed, 
the  compiled  laws  of  1805  were  popularly  known  as 
Woodward's  Code.  This  compilation  embodied  the 
results  of  the  early  efforts  of  the  Governor  and 
Judges  to  formulate  laws  for  the  Territory.  The 
Code  of  the  Northwest  Territory,  having  been  handed 
down  to  Indiana  and  Illinois,  became  the  basis  of 


GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  MICHIGAN          121 

jurisprudence  in  those  Territories,  and  alterations 
were  made  from  time  to  time  to  keep  pace  with  the 
changing  conditions.  But  Michigan,  being  different 
in  situation  and  having  peculiar  conditions  to  meet, 
struck  out  alone  and  enacted  a  new  code  of  laws 
especially  adapted  to  the  situation  of  the  new  Terri- 
tory. 

In  the  sessions  of  the  Governor  and  Judges  as 
a  law-making  body  there  was  great  unanimity  in  the 
passage  of  the  laws.  The  only  disagreements  were 
upon  the  old  question  as  to  what  constituted  '  *  a  ma- 
jority of  the  Governor  and  Judges",  and  upon  the 
necessity  of  enacting  laws  only  of  the  original 
States.218 

Since  the  first  experiments  of  Governor  St. 
Clair  and  the  Judges  of  the  Northwest  Territory, 
Congress  had  looked  with  much  disfavor  upon  the 
practice  of  enacting  laws  de  novo ;  and  so  the  strict 
letter  of  the  Ordinance  was  now  complied  with.  In 
Woodward's  Code  the  original  statute  from  which 
the  law  was  taken  was  always  indicated,  being  con- 
sidered as  much  a  part  of  the  law  as  the  title  or  en- 
acting clause.  This  method  of  law-making  was  not 
accepted,  however,  without  a  protest,  and  Governor 
Hull  in  a  report  to  the  President  argued  strongly 
and  at  some  length  in  favor  of  repealing  this  un- 
necessary, awkward,  and  non-republican  restric- 
tion.219 A  local  writer  of  that  time  declared  that  the 
Governor  and  Judges  would  "parade  the  laws  of  the 
original  States  before  them  on  the  table,  cull  letters 


122      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

from  the  laws  of  Maryland,  syllables  from  the  laws 
of  Virginia,  words  from  the  laws  of  New  York,  sen- 
tences from  the  laws  of  Pennsylvania,  verses  from 
the  laws  of  Kentucky,  and  chapters  from  the  laws  of 
Connecticut."220  This  contemporary  burlesque,  in 
spite  of  its  exaggeration,  emphasized  what  the  Gov- 
ernors had  repeatedly  stated  —  that  there  was  no 
logical  or  practical  necessity  for  such  a  limitation 
upon  the  law-making  power.  No  law  in  all  its  de- 
tails will  fit  two  different  conditions;  but  by  this 
system  the  bad  and  unsuitable  parts  must  be  adopted 
with  the  good.  It  set  a  premium  upon  the  promis- 
cuous taking  of  general  laws,  instead  of  encouraging 
a  careful  selection  of  the  best  from  all  sources  to 
meet  special  needs.  It  would  seem  that  the  partici- 
pation of  the  Governor  in  legislation  and  the  super- 
visory control  of  Congress  were  sufficient  checks 
without  the  addition  of  such  a  troublesome  limita- 
tion. 

Thanks  to  the  energy  of  Judge  Woodward  the 
code  of  1805  was  completed  without  delay  —  in  spite 
of  the  undercurrent  of  dissension  in  its  preparation 
—  and  was  duly  enacted  as  the  law  of  the  Territory. 

When  Governor  Hull  first  came  to  the  Territory 
he  found  the  once  thriving  town  of  Detroit,  the  cap- 
ital of  the  Territory,  wiped  out  completely  by  a  dev- 
astating fire,  and  the  people  homeless  and  in  want. 
Steps  were  at  once  taken  to  relieve  the  suffering. 
A  temporary  town  was  laid  out,  and  soon  thereafter 
courts  were  established  to  settle  existing  business. 


GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  MICHIGAN          123 

The  militia  was  also  organized  and  brought  into  the 
field  for  the  protection  of  property.  With  these  tem- 
porary expedients  established,  Congress  was  impor- 
tuned to  empower  the  Governor  and  Judges  to  make 
permanent  enactments  regarding  the  land.221 

In  the  spring  of  1806  Congress  passed  an  act 
granting  a  tract  of  ten  thousand  acres  of  land  upon 
and  adjacent  to  the  old  site  of  Detroit,  and  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Judges  were  authorized  to  lay  out  a  new 
town  and  give  land  to  the  American  citizens  made 
destitute  by  the  fire.222  The  Governor  and  Judges 
thus  became  a  board  of  apportionment  and  equaliza- 
tion, and  they  were  also  empowered  to  sit  as  a  court 
to  hear  and  adjust  claims  arising  as  a  consequence  of 
such  grants  of  land.  These  sittings  gave  frequent 
opportunities  for  the  incompatible  tempers  of  the 
Governor  and  the  Chief  Justice  to  clash. 

One  writer  says  that  "as  one  of  the  associate 
judges  took  sides  with  the  governor  and  the  other 
against  him,  the  meetings  of  the  four,  whether  as  a 
land  board  or  as  a  legislature,  were  occasions  for 
undignified  and  angry  contests  and  dissentions 
which  were  well  calculated  to  bring  public  authority 
into  contempt.  It  does  not  appear  that  the  governor 
was  wanting  in  proper  observance  of  the  proprieties 
of  his  station,  or  of  the  rules  of  law;  but  his  antag- 
onist was  less  scrupulous,  and  by  his  very  audacity 
not  only  for  the  most  part  carried  his  points,  but 
also  carried  with  him  an  apparent  public  sentiment. 
He  [Woodward]  was  ingenious  in  finding  ways  to 


124      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

annoy  and  mortify  the  governor,  and  his  own  mis- 
behavior furnished  opportunities  when  nothing  else 
did."223 

The  French  and  other  foreigners,  as  well  as  the 
Canadians  and  Indians,  had  paid  little  attention  to 
their  titles,  and  the  confusion  and  conflict  of  evi- 
dence, together  with  the  obliteration  of  many  land- 
marks by  the  fire,  threw  the  whole  question  of  land 
distribution  into  an  interminable  tangle.224  These 
conditions  and  the  consequent  wrangles  of  the  au- 
thorities resulted  in  an  uncertain  and  vacillating 
policy,  and  nothing  of  consequence  was  accomplished 
until  long  after  the  fire.  In  the  meantime  all  busi- 
ness in  the  Territory  was  at  a  standstill.225 

Governor  Hull  also  found  that  the  duties  of  Su- 
perintendent of  Indian  Affairs  were  unexpectedly 
difficult  and  onerous.  He  discovered  that  the  "plans 
made  by  a  New  England  fireside  for  the  amelioration 
of  the  aboriginal  conditions"  were  sadly  deficient 
when  it  came  to  practical  application,  and  that  his 
own  aesthetic  and  pacific  nature  was  unfitted  to  brave 
the  wilds  of  the  frontier  on  the  dangerous  mission 
of  placating  the  savages.226  The  Indians  were  rest- 
less throughout  the  West,  and  the  British  influence 
from  over  the  border  enhanced  their  ill-feeling  and 
resentment.  Even  the  activity  of  General  Harrison 
and  his  victory  at  Tippecanoe  did  not  entirely  curb 
the  Indian  barbarities  in  isolated  regions.  It  was 
too  much  of  a  problem  for  Governor  Hull,  and  al- 
though he  negotiated  a  few  treaties  he  was  glad  to 


GOVERNOR  HULL  AND  MICHIGAN          125 

leave  the  general  control  of  Indian  affairs  in  the 
hands  of  General  Harrison. 

Governor  Hull's  rather  unfortunate  administra- 
tion culminated  in  the  surrender  of  Detroit  to  the 
British  at  the  very  beginning  of  the  War  of  1812.227 
He  gave  up  the  town  completely  —  prompted,  it  is 
said,  by  the  humanitarian  motive  of  protecting  the 
citizens  from  Indian  barbarities  —  without  a  stroke 
in  its  defense.  Such  an  ignominious  surrender 
aroused  the  resentment  of  the  whole  people;  and 
when  it  was  followed  by  an  arbitrary  and  oppressive 
military  government  by  the  British  the  cup  of  bitter- 
ness was  almost  full. 

The  action  of  Chief  Justice  Woodward  in  re- 
maining at  his  post  and  assisting  the  British  in  civil 
affairs  after  the  surrender  was  much  criticised.  But 
in  a  vigorous  letter  to  Secretary  of  State  Monroe  he 
stated  that  he  did  so  for  the  purpose  of  protecting 
American  interests  and  assisting  his  fellow  citizens 
as  much  as  possible,  and  that  he  did  not  receive  any 
remuneration  from  the  British  nor  did  he  perform 
any  official  act.228  In  spite  of  Woodward's  efforts 
the  interregnum  of  English  military  rule  was  never- 
theless a  heavy  yoke  upon  the  people ;  and  although 
the  American  laws  and  courts  were  continued,  the 
galling  exercise  of  arbitrary  power  was  eased  but 
very  little.  The  coming  of  the  American  army  which 
released  the  inhabitants  from  this  thralldom  was 
hailed  with  joy.229 


126      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

The  history  of  the  Michigan  frontier  during  the 
war  would  form  a  volume  in  itself.  In  this  connec- 
tion it  is  sufficient  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  ravages 
of  war  and  the  interrupted  development  of  those  un- 
certain times,  combined  with  a  constantly  changing 
civil  and  military  government,  left  Michigan  in  a 
somewhat  chaotic  condition. 

With  the  government  of  the  Territory  hopelessly 
demoralized,  and  the  danger,  treachery  and  destitu- 
tion prevailing  along  the  border,  the  need  of  a  vigor- 
ous executive  became  imperative.  President  Madison 
selected  for  the  task  a  young  man  who  was  aggres- 
sive and  fearless,  schooled  in  the  privations  of  a 
frontier  soldier's  life,  but  with  a  wide  experience 
and  a  capacity  for  statecraft  —  Lewis  Cass.230 


IX 


The  task  that  confronted  Governor  Cass  in  1813 
was  a  stupendous  one.  The  changing  fortunes  of 
the  war  had  left  the  Territory  in  a  state  of  disorgan- 
ization. The  civil  system  was  razed  to  the  ground : 
not  one  stone  was  left  upon  another.  The  troops 
had  been  withdrawn  for  the  eastern  campaigns,  leav- 
ing only  a  handful  of  soldiers  with  inadequate  equip- 
ment to  defend  the  border.  The  Indians,  made  bold 
by  the  license  of  war  and  incited  by  English  influ- 
ence, murdered  and  plundered  the  people  almost 
without  restraint;  and  even  the  friendly  tribes  had 
become  treacherous  and  uncertain. 

With  the  whole  country  pillaged  and  devastated 
the  people  were  in  actual  want,  and  starvation  stared 
them  in  the  face.  The  French  settlers  especially, 
with  their  usual  resources  exhausted,  and  unable  in 
their  easy-going  way  to  provide  for  such  an  emergen- 
cy, were  in  destitute  circumstances.  The  poor  set- 
tlers from  the  Raisin  Eiver,  whose  homes  had  been 
burned  and  whose  crops  and  belongings  had  been 
destroyed,  were  in  dire  need  of  clothing  and  the  ne- 
cessities of  life.  Business  and  trade  were  every- 
where practically  suspended.  The  currency  was  de- 


128      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

predated  and  unstable.  The  government  stores 
were  used  to  supply  the  most  pressing  needs,  but 
they  were  inadequate;  and  even  the  special  appro- 
priations secured  from  Congress  scarcely  more  than 
tided  the  people  over  some  of  the  more  deplorable 
situations.  The  sinister  clouds  of  want  and  despair 
hung  darkly  over  the  Territory  of  Michigan.231 

Throughout  Governor  Cass  grappled  with  the 
problems  with  energy  and  decision.  He  distributed 
the  public  stores  with  discriminating  judgment 
where  they  were  most  needed  to  ward  off  actual 
starvation ;  and  he  did  all  in  his  power  to  secure  aid 
and  appropriations  from  the  general  government. 
His  first  thought  was  for  the  starving  and  desolate 
inhabitants,  and  he  worked  with  tireless  energy  for 
their  relief  during  the  whole  period  of  the  war  when 
the  suffering  was  the  greatest. 

The  Governor  saw  clearly  that  confidence  must 
be  restored.  Progress  was  impossible  with  the  peo- 
ple huddled  like  frightened  sheep  around  the  forts 
and  villages,  or  barricaded  within  their  own  homes 
and  startled  into  feverish  preparation  for  defense  at 
the  slightest  noise.  Without  delay  a  volunteer  com- 
pany was  formed  and  Cass  led  them  boldly  against 
the  Indians.  His  dashing  bravery  was  contagious 
and  so  inspired  his  soldiers  that  they  completely 
routed  the  Indians  in  a  fierce  engagement.  This  vic- 
tory the  Governor  followed  up  with  a  relentless  per- 
severance which  soon  brought  the  tribes  to  terms. 
Confidence  thus  restored  acted  like  magic  upon  the 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  129 

Territory.  The  people  began  to  appreciate  their 
fearless  and  practical  Governor,  and  they  rallied  to 
his  assistance. 

But  all  through  the  period  of  the  war  Cass  was 
greatly  hampered  by  the  lack  of  military  authority 
and  assistance.  No  military  commission  had  been 
issued  to  him  since  his  appointment  as  Governor, 
and  as  a  civil  officer  he  had  little  authority  over  the 
small  garrison  and  very  little  control  over  the  few 
troops  who  were  continually  being  hurried  off  to 
eastern  battlefields. 

In  the  meantime  the  Governor  was  diligently  re- 
storing the  local  government  of  the  Territory.  The 
parts  of  the  system  which  were  the  most  essential 
were  at  once  reorganized.  Courts  were  established, 
local  officers  and  magistrates  appointed,  and  the  Ter- 
ritory laid  out  into  administrative  divisions.  Much 
care  was  exercised  in  the  selection  of  officers  —  al- 
though difficulty  was  occasioned  by  the  indifference 
of  the  French  and  Canadian  elements  in  the  popula- 
tion. But  Cass  was  an  enthusiastic,  patriotic  Amer- 
ican, and  he  began  the  task  of  instilling  American 
principles  with  characteristic  vigor  and  thorough- 
ness. Nothing  was  left  undone  to  make  the  local 
governments  as  effective  as  possible. 

As  the  population  increased  the  Governor  gave 
greater  rein  to  his  decided  democratic  views  by  al- 
lowing the  people  to  express  their  wishes  at  every 
possible  opportunity.  It  was  his  custom  to  send  out 
blank  commissions  and  permit  the  people  to  select 


130      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

certain  officers  by  local  elections,  although  he  thus 
voluntarily  curtailed  his  own  right  of  appointment.232 
He  did  not  hesitate  to  put  into  practice  his  often  re- 
peated doctrine  that  the  people  were  the  true  source 
of  power  in  government  and  that  they  should  have 
a  direct  voice  in  political  affairs. 

So  eagerly  did  Governor  Cass  press  on  towards 
self-government  for  the  Territory  that  in  1818  he 
called  for  a  vote  of  the  people  on  the  question  of 
whether  or  not  they  desired  to  enter  upon  the  second 
stage  of  political  organization  under  the  Ordinance. 
The  people,  however,  not  being  ready  for  the  change, 
voted  down  the  proposition;  and  it  was  not  until 
1823  that  the  second  stage  of  government  was  adopt- 
ed and  a  legislature  elected. 

The  subject  of  land  titles  gave  the  officials  in 
Michigan  considerable  trouble,  just  as  it  had  the 
earlier  Governors  in  the  Old  Northwest.  Although 
portions  of  the  Michigan  country  had  been  settled 
for  over  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  only  eight  reg- 
ular titles  were  found.233  Exhaustive  investigations 
and  reports  were  made  upon  the  subject,  and  at  last 
a  committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  recom- 
mended a  liberal  land  policy  as  the  truest  economy 
and  the  surest  means  of  binding  the  frontier  people 
to  the  government  by  ties  of  interest  and  friend- 
ship.234 

A  law  was  accordingly  passed  by  Congress  ap- 
proving the  report  of  the  land  commissioners  at  De- 
troit and  confirming  title  in  actual  settlers  within 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  131 

the  districts  where  Indian  titles  had  been  extin- 
guished and  where  such  title  did  not  conflict  with 
United  States  registration  and  reservations.  The 
same  act  gave  the  commissioners  summary  power  to 
decide  upon  land  claims  outside  of  Detroit.235  Sub- 
sequent acts  were  passed  from  time  to  time  confirm- 
ing and  enlarging  the  rights  of  settlers  and  granting 
them  the  right  of  preemption.236  Governor  Cass  was 
a  firm  believer  in  this  policy,  and  continually  urged 
the  sale  of  land  in  smaller  subdivisions  to  actual 
settlers.237 

The  Territory  of  Michigan  was  at  the  start  dis- 
credited by  the  government  surveyors  who  came  to 
run  the  meridian  line  for  the  purpose  of  surveying 
the  bounty  and  other  government  lands.  These  sur- 
veyors, either  unnerved  by  the  hardships  and  diffi- 
culties of  the  task  or  indifferent  to  their  duties,  re- 
turned after  a  short  time  and  reported  that  the  in- 
terior of  Michigan  was  a  cheerless  wilderness  of 
swamps  and  sand,  very  little  of  it  being  fit  for  cul- 
tivation. 

Acting  on  this  report,  the  President  in  his  mes- 
sage of  1816  advised  Congress  to  locate  the  bounty 
lands  for  soldiers  in  more  fertile  portions  of  the 
Northwest.238  This  official  condemnation  spread 
throughout  the  East  and  prospective  settlers 
shunned  the  Michigan  country  as  they  would  an  in- 
fected district.  It  was  difficult  to  overcome  this 
groundless  prejudice,  and  Governor  Cass  worked  for 
years  to  restore  the  confidence  of  the  government 


132      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

and  of  the  people  in  the  fertile  lands  of  Michigan. 
In  furtherance  of  this  object  he  led  an  extensive  ex- 
ploring expedition  out  through  the  western  section 
of  the  Territory,  taking  with  him  scientists  of  abil- 
ity, whose  reports  of  the  wonderful  fertility  of  the 
region  and  of  its  vast  undeveloped  resources  helped 
to  allay  the  distrust  and  encourage  immigration.240 

Works  of  internal  improvement  were  also  begun, 
such  as  the  building  of  public  roads,  which  greatly 
facilitated  immigration  and  communication  between 
various  sections  of  the  Territory.  Governor  Cass 
labored  tirelessly  and  effectively  for  the  welfare  of 
his  Territory,  and  he  was  rewarded  by  a  rapid  in- 
crease in  population  and  material  prosperity. 

The  extinguishment  of  the  Indian  title  to  the 
land  and  the  pacification  of  hostilely  inclined  Bed 
Men  was  a  much  more  difficult  and  delicate  matter. 
It  required  great  personal  exertion  as  well  as  cour- 
age, tact,  and  resourcefulness.  Governor  Cass  trav- 
eled over  the  Territory,  riding  hundreds  of  miles  on 
horseback  or  in  boats  to  the  furthest  districts,  in 
order  to  negotiate  treaties,  quell  uprisings,  or 
strengthen  the  friendship  of  the  Indians. 

It  has  been  estimated  that  there  were  over  forty- 
one  thousand  Indians  in  the  Territory  of  Michigan 
at  this  time ; 241  and  as  Governor  Cass  was  ex-officio 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs,  his  responsibilities 
were  great.  He  took  a  broad  view  of  the  question 
and  seems  always  to  have  had  the  interest  and  wel- 
fare of  the  Indians  at  heart.  He  continually  encour- 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  133 

aged  industry  and  civilizing  tendencies  among  them 
—  especially  when  dispensing  government  stores  and 
treaty  payments  —  and  he  sought  vigorously  to  pre- 
vent the  use  of  "fire  water".  It  is  said  that  on  one 
occasion,  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  government 
was  not  actuated  by  parsimonious  motives  in  this 
matter,  he  knocked  in  the  heads  of  several  casks  of 
liquor  and  allowed  the  contents  to  run  out  on  the 
ground,  amid  the  despairing  protests  of  the  thirsty 
warriors.242  He  always  dealt  fairly  and  honestly 
with  the  Indians,  kept  his  word  at  any  cost,  and  en- 
deavored at  all  times  to  have  his  treaty  pledges  and 
payments  punctually  and  fully  carried  out. 

The  Governor's  knowledge  of  Indian  character 
was  remarkable,  and  his  actions  at  crucial  moments 
were  courageous  and  firm.  It  is  related  that  on  one 
of  his  expeditions  his  small  company  came  upon  a 
large  Indian  encampment  where  the  braves  had 
donned  their  war  paint  and  were  in  an  ugly  mood. 
The  Governor  endeavored  to  arrange  a  council,  but 
the  Indians  were  openly  hostile  and  impudent. 
Finally  the  savages  retired  to  their  camp  and  delib- 
erately hoisted  a  British  flag.  Governor  Cass  with- 
out a  moment's  hesitation,  alone  and  unarmed,  strode 
into  their  midst,  hauled  down  the  flag  and  trampled 
it  under  his  feet,  telling  them  in  strong  terms  that 
two  flags  could  not  float  over  the  same  land,  and  that 
the  Great  American  Father  would  certainly  crush 
them  if  they  were  not  faithful.  The  Indians,  dis- 
mayed by  this  display  of  courage,  gave  up  their  war- 


134      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

like  intentions  and  signed  the  treaty  which  the  Gov- 
ernor drew  up  for  them.243  It  was  his  courage  and 
his  thorough  knowledge  of  Indian  traits  which  made 
Cass  so  successful  in  his  administration  of  Indian 
affairs.  In  addition  to  all  the  other  work  he  accom- 
plished along  this  line,  he  negotiated  eighteen  Indian 
treaties  during  his  administration.  Some  of  these 
treaties  were  very  important  and  involved  the  cession 
to  the  United  States  of  vast  tracts  of  land,  which 
were  thus  rendered  accessible  for  settlement  and 
improvement.244 

The  flag  incident  is  illustrative  of  another  diffi- 
culty which  Governor  Cass  had  to  contend  against  to 
a  greater  degree  even  than  the  other  Territorial  Gov- 
ernors in  the  Old  Northwest  during  this  period  — 
namely,  the  insidious  British  influence  across  the 
border.  As  has  already  been  stated,  the  English 
agents  in  Canada  continued  to  distribute  presents  to 
the  Indians  and  persistently  sought  to  poison  their 
minds  against  the  Americans  long  after  the  war  had 
ceased.  The  desire  to  retain  control  of  the  fur  trade, 
as  well  as  a  desire  for  revenge,  perpetuated  this  pol- 
icy. The  presence  of  the  British  flag  in  the  Indian 
camp  was  strong  evidence  of  British  persuasion,  and 
made  plain  the  source  of  hostility  and  discontent. 
Two  other  instances  will  further  illustrate  this  point. 

Colonel  James,  the  commander  of  a  small  Brit- 
ish post  across  the  border,  notified  Governor  Cass 
that  an  Indian  had  been  murdered  by  American  sol- 
diers and  intimated  that  savage  vengeance  would  be 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  135 

the  result  if  the  culprit  was  not  summarily  punished. 
Governor  Cass  replied  that  he  would  investigate  the 
case  and  that  he  felt  confident  that  justice  would  pro- 
vide punishment  commensurate  with  the  crime. 
Later,  having  gone  thoroughly  into  the  facts,  Cass 
wrote  to  Colonel  James  that  the  Indian  was  killed 
while  attempting  to  shoot  an  American  soldier,  that 
the  affair  had  occurred  within  the  Territorial  juris- 
diction of  the  United  States,  and  that  the  laws  of  the 
Territory  provided  for  the  punishment  of  the  offend- 
er and  afforded  ample  redress  for  the  aggrieved 
parties.  Balked  in  this  attempt  to  interfere,  and 
exasperated  at  the  reply  of  Governor  Cass,  the  Brit- 
ish commander  thereupon  issued  a  proclamation  of- 
fering a  reward  of  five  hundred  dollars  for  the  ap- 
prehension of  the  murderer.  Cass  promptly  issued 
a  counter  proclamation,  requiring  all  citizens  of  the 
Territory  of  Michigan  to  repel  by  force  any  attempt 
which  might  be  made  to  apprehend  any  person  within 
the  Territory  by  virtue  of  the  British  proclamation 
or  any  other  process  issued  by  any  other  authority 
than  that  of  the  United  States  or  the  Michigan 
Territory.245  Needless  to  say  the  offender  was  not 
turned  over  to  the  British  for  punishment.  The 
position  of  the  English  was  so  flagrantly  untenable 
and  so  plainly  assumed  for  the  purpose  of  influencing 
the  Indians  and  appearing  as  the  public  champion  of 
the  Indian  cause  that  the  Governor's  rebuke  of  such 
unwarrantable  interference  must  be  regarded  as  very 
moderate. 


136      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

On  another  occasion  an  armed  British  vessel  in- 
tercepted and  boarded  several  American  schooners 
and  examined  their  crews  and  lading  for  the  purpose 
of  taking  off  alleged  British  deserters.  Governor 
Cass  promptly  notified  the  commanding  officer  of  the 
British  vessel  that  such  an  arrogant  and  imperious 
encroachment  upon  the  rights  of  American  citizens 
was  without  justification.  "In  an  aggression  like 
this, ' '  he  said, ' '  the  government  of  the  United  States 
can  alone  determine  what  course  the  honor  and  inter- 
est of  the  nation  requires  should  be  taken.  But  un- 
til their  decision  shall  be  made  known  upon  the  sub- 
ject, it  becomes  my  duty  to  remonstrate  against  a 
practice  for  which  the  laws  of  nations  afford  no  pre- 
tense ;  which  is  inconsistent  with  the  relations  exist- 
ing between  our  respective  governments;  and  the 
continuance  of  which  must  be  attended  with  serious 
and  important  consequences."246  The  Governor's 
firm  attitude  seems  to  have  had  the  desired  effect,  for 
no  further  complaints  were  heard.  The  government 
approved  the  position  Cass  had  taken,  and  stood 
ready  to  resort  to  war  to  uphold  the  right  of  liberty 
and  freedom  against  foreign  interference. 

In  1823  the  Territory  of  Michigan  entered  upon 
a  second  stage  of  organization.  It  should  be  noted, 
however,  that  this  change  did  not  introduce  the  sec- 
ond grade  of  Territorial  government  as  provided  by 
the  Ordinance,  since  the  legislative  power  was  vested 
in  a  single  body  —  the  Legislative  Council.  Congress 
by  special  act  provided  that  the  Legislative  Council 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  137 

was  to  be  composed  of  nine  members  chosen  by  the 
President,  with  the  consent  of  the  Senate,  out  of 
eighteen  candidates  selected  by  the  people  of  the  Ter- 
ritory.247 Moreover,  an  act  in  1825  contained  some 
of  the  most  important  amendments  to  the  plan  of  the 
Ordinance  that  had  yet  been  attempted:  it  under- 
took to  prevent  any  further  differences  in  the  matter 
of  laying  out  townships  by  stipulating  that  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Legislative  Council  should  have  the  right 
to  divide  the  Territory  into  townships  and  provide 
for  their  incorporation  and  mode  of  government. 
The  Governor's  right  to  appoint  all  civil  officers  was 
continued,  but  the  consent  of  the  Legislative  Council 
was  made  necessary  in  confirmation  of  all  such  ap- 
pointments.248 

This  last  provision  made  the  Governor's  ap- 
pointive power  more  nearly  analogous  to  that  exer- 
cised by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and 
constituted  an  important  constitutional  check  upon 
his  authority.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Governor  had 
gained  a  decided  advantage  by  the  right  to  control 
the  organization  of  townships.  St.  Clair  had  in- 
sisted only  on  the  right  to  lay  out  the  counties  and 
townships  —  a  bare  right  of  designation  which  was 
disputed  by  the  legislature.  Under  the  act  of  1825 
the  Governor  had  the  power  of  allotment  and  also 
the  right  to  form  the  plan  of  local  government.  This 
power  was  checked  by  the  approval  of  the  Council 
it  is  true,  but  the  Governor  still  had  the  initiative, 


138      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

which,  even  with  such  a  check,  is  an  important  pre- 
rogative in  the  hands  of  a  discreet  executive. 

In  1827  the  right  of  electing  the  members  of  the 
Legislative  Council  was  given  to  the  people  of  the 
Territory249 — an  extension  of  the  franchise  which 
followed  naturally  as  a  result  of  the  increasing  pop- 
ulation, and  which  was  in  line  with  the  general  pol- 
icy of  altering  the  Territorial  government  to  suit 
the  development  of  the  country. 

The  first  elective  legislature  of  the  Territory  of 
Michigan  met  on  June  7,  1824,  in  the  old  Council 
House  at  Detroit;  and  there  Governor  Cass  deliv- 
ered his  first  message.250  It  was  a  careful  exposi- 
tion of  the  needs  of  the  Territory,  and  one  of  the 
strongest  recommendations  was  that  the  laws  be 
revised  and  codified.  It  is  interesting  to  note  in  this 
connection  that  many  of  the  enactments  of  the  North- 
west Territory  still  persisted  in  Michigan.  Persons 
practicing  witchcraft  were  punished  by  a  fine  not  to 
exceed  fifty  dollars  or  by  imprisonment  for  not  more 
than  three  months ;  the  care  of  the  poor  was  sold  by 
the  sheriff  to  the  best  bidder;  while  imprisonment 
for  debt  was  retained  in  the  Territory  until  1822  and 
in  a  modified  form  for  many  years  thereafter.  Per- 
sons guilty  of  petty  offences,  upon  the  order  of  a 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  were  publicly  whipped,  and 
their  services  for  a  period  of  not  more  than  three 
months  sold  at  auction  to  the  highest  bidder.251  It 
is  said  that  not  until  1831  was  the  old,  notorious 
whipping-post  that  stood  in  the  market-place  at  De- 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  139 

troit  removed.252  Many  new  and  up-to-date  laws 
were  in  fact  needed,  but  the  Governor  warned  the 
law-makers  against  hasty  or  ill-advised  measures, 
and  urged  that  the  laws  be  codified. 

The  Governor  also  recommended  that  a  more 
popular  system  of  local  government  be  adopted. 
The  county  government  had  since  1820  consisted 
merely  of  three  commissioners  for  each  county,  ap- 
pointed by  the  Governor.253  In  accordance  with  the 
recommendation  of  Cass,  it  was  provided  in  1825 
that  these  county  commissioners  should  be  elected 
by  the  people.254  No  better  illustration  is  needed 
to  reveal  the  sincere  devotion  of  Governor  Cass  to 
the  interests  of  the  people  of  the  Territory.  More- 
over, he  continued  to  urge  a  further  extension  of 
popular  rights  and  privileges,  and  it  was  largely 
through  his  influence  that  Congress  passed  the  act 
of  1827,  which  provided  that  the  members  of  the 
Legislative  Council  should  be  elected  by  the  people, 
abolished  the  county  commissioner  system,  and 
established  the  town  meeting  for  the  election  of 
township  and  county  officers.255  Each  township 
now  selected  one  supervisor  and  all  these  met  to- 
gether as  the  county  board.  Thus  the  township- 
county  system  of  local  government  became  establish- 
ed in  the  Territory.256  Governor  Cass  was  largely  in- 
strumental in  shaping  the  local  government  of  Mich- 
igan, and  in  enlarging  the  franchise  and  the  partici- 
pation of  the  people  in  the  administration  of  the 
government  during  Territorial  days. 


140      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

The  extension  of  land  rights  and  the  discovery 
of  rich  mineral  and  other  natural  resources  led  to  a 
rapid  increase  in  the  population  of  the  Territory; 
and  so  quite  naturally  Governor  Cass  turned  his  at- 
tention to  the  needs  of  its  material  development. 
He  planned  the  building  of  one  or  two  government 
roads  to  facilitate  trade  and  travel,  as  well  as  the 
improvement  of  important  highways  throughout  the 
Territory;  and  he  secured  aid  from  time  to  time 
from  the  general  government  for  these  projects.257 
Under  his  wise  administration  the  Territory  grew 
strong  and  prosperous.  By  the  year  1830  the  census 
showed  a  population  of  over  thirty  thousand ;  while 
in  industrial  and  civil  development  the  Territory 
was  almost  ready  for  statehood. 

The  great  task  of  Governor  Cass  was  now  ac- 
complished, and  the  indifferent,  alien,  and  inhar- 
monious elements  were  assimilated  into  a  genuine 
American  community.  Michigan  was  Americanized 
—  a  service  for  which  not  only  Michigan  but  the 
whole  United  States  owes  Lewis  Cass  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude. The  spirit  of  independence  and  self-govern- 
ment which  he  instilled  into  the  people  became  one 
of  the  chief  assets  of  Michigan  in  later  years. 

Thus  through  all  the  vicissitudes  of  frontier  ad- 
vancement, by  a  wise  and  vigorous  administration 
of  public  affairs  for  a  period  of  eighteen  years,  Gov- 
ernor Cass  strengthened  the  foundation  of  the  pros- 
perity of  the  Territory  of  Michigan.  In  1832  Pres- 
ident Jackson  selected  Cass  as  his  Secretary  of  War, 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  141 

a  position  which  afforded  him  a  larger  field  in  which 
to  exercise  the  broad  statesmanship  that  made  his 
term  as  Governor  one  of  the  most  notable  in  Ter- 
ritorial history  in  the  United  States. 

When  Governor  Cass  ended  his  term  of  office 
in  the  Territory  the  question  of  the  appointment  of 
new  Territorial  officers  became  a  pertinent  one. 
President  Jackson's  newly  inaugurated  "spoils  sys- 
tem" was  now  a  feature  in  National  politics,  and  the 
Territorial  offices  were  luscious  plums  for  his  friends 
and  politicians  in  the  doubtful  States.  It  was  mainly 
on  these  grounds  that  the  President  appointed  John 
T.  Mason  of  Virginia  as  the  new  Secretary  for  the 
Territory  of  Michigan.  Mason  decided  to  go  abroad, 
however,  and  requested  that  his  son,  Stevens  T. 
Mason,  be  appointed  in  his  place.  This  request  was 
complied  with,  and  the  boy  not  yet  of  age  took  charge 
of  this  important  office.258 

By  a  queer  chain  of  circumstances  the  persons 
appointed  by  the  President  as  Governor  from  time 
to  time  during  the  remainder  of  the  Territorial  per- 
iod spent  but  little  if  any  time  in  the  Territory,  and 
so  the  boy  Secretary  as  Acting  Governor  performed 
the  duties  of  the  executive  office.259  Fortunately  he 
carried  on  the  affairs  of  the  Territory  with  consider- 
able ability. 

In  1834,  just  as  young  Mason  assumed  the  du- 
ties of  his  office,  the  great  region  west  of  the  Missis- 
sippi and  north  of  the  State  of  Missouri  was  rescued 
from  the  state  of  constitutional  oblivion  to  which  it 


142      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

had  so  long  been  consigned  and  attached  to  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Michigan  for  purposes  of  local  govern- 
ment.260 Little  attention,  however,  was  paid  to  this 
vast  western  region  just  opened  to  immigration, 
fringed  with  two  or  three  rudimentary  settlements 
and  dotted  with  a  few  lonely  settlers '  cabins  —  a  re- 
gion far  away  from  the  scenes  of  activity  in  the  Ter- 
ritory, as  yet  little  known,  and  thought  of  only  as  a 
desolate  wilderness.  Moreover,  the  officers  and  peo- 
ple of  the  Territory  were  so  engrossed  in  the  excite- 
ment of  a  boundary  dispute  with  Ohio,  and  in  the 
political  agitations  connected  with  the  preparations 
for  statehood,  that  they  had  little  time  or  thought  for 
their  great  western  domains.  It  is  manifest,  there- 
fore, that  with  the  exception  of  a  few  legislative  acts 
the  direct  influence  of  the  Michigan  government  upon 
that  part  of  the  country  was  small,  and  that  the  fron- 
tiersmen across  the  great  river  were  left  very  much 
to  themselves  as  far  as  the  authorities  of  the  Michi- 
gan Territory  were  concerned. 

When  the  boundary  dispute  with  Ohio  arose  the 
Governor  defended  the  cause  of  Michigan  with  so 
much  ardor  and  ability  that  "his  administration  be- 
came as  popular  as  at  first  it  had  been  obnoxious."261 
Experience  in  office  had  also  fitted  him  for  its  du- 
ties; and  it  is  an  interesting  fact  that  Stevens  T. 
Mason  was  elected  first  Governor  under  the  pro- 
visional State  government  in  1835.  It  was  he  who 
piloted  the  Territorial  and  provisional  governments 


GOVERNORS  CASS  AND  MASON  143 

through  the  peculiar  entanglements  that  marked  the 
transition  from  Territory  to  State.262 

The  trouble  which  Michigan  experienced  in 
forming  a  State  constitution  was  not  caused  by  any 
lack  of  inclination  on  the  part  of  the  people,  but  by 
the  difficulty  of  securing  satisfactory  terms  of  ad- 
mission.263 The  experience  of  the  Territorial  per- 
iod had  trained  the  people  in  independent  thinking. 
Michigan  had  been  the  border  battlefield  over  which 
had  surged  French,  English,  and  American  forces  in 
their  attempts  to  control  the  country.  And  now  that 
under  the  guidance  of  Governor  Cass  they  had 
thrown  off  old  prejudices  and  customs,  the  people 
were  strong  and  vigorous  Americans,  ready  to  fight 
for  their  rights  and  to  stand  solidly  together  at  any 
cost. 

The  broad  statesmanship  of  Lewis  Cass  is  the 
distinctive  feature  of  the  Territorial  history  of  Mich- 
igan. It  was  indeed  a  great  work  to  Americanize 
the  Territory  of  Michigan,  and  the  success  with 
which  it  was  accomplished  is  additional  evidence  of 
the  wisdom  of  the  policy  that  placed  strong  men  with 
large  discretionary  powers  at  the  head  of  our  Terri- 
torial governments. 


GOVEENOES  DODGE  AND  DOTY  AND  THE 
TEEEITOEY  OF  WISCONSIN 

While  the  Territory  of  Michigan  was  wrangling 
with  the  State  of  Ohio  over  boundaries  and  the  peo- 
ple were  wondering  whether  they  were  still  a  Terri- 
tory or  had  become  a  State  within  the  Union,  the 
inhabitants  of  the  region  west  of  Lake  Michigan  be- 
gan to  feel  the  need  of  a  government  of  their  own. 
Indeed,  there  had  for  some  time  been  agitation  for 
a  separate  Territorial  government.  The  matter  was 
taken  up  by  the  Legislative  Council  and  a  memorial 
was  sent  to  Congress  requesting  that  all  the  country 
west  of  Lake  Michigan,  not  included  in  the  new 
State  that  was  about  to  be  admitted,  should  be  or- 
ganized as  a  separate  Territory.  The  result  was 
that  on  April  20,  1836,  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin 
was  established.264 

The  Organic  Act  of  the  new  Territory  was  mod- 
eled upon  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Ordi- 
nance of  1787.  The  Governor  was  still  the  domina- 
ting power  in  the  government,  with  practically  the 
same  powers  and  duties  as  his  predecessors. 

An  important  change,  however,  was  made  in  the 
method  of  legislation.  Instead  of  the  Governor  and 
Judges  being  constituted  the  first  law-making  body, 


GOVERNORS  DODGE  AND  DOTY  145 

the  powers  of  legislation  were  from  the  first  vested 
in  the  Governor  and  a  Legislative  Assembly.  The 
Assembly  consisted  of  a  House  of  Bepresentatives 
of  twenty-six  members  elected  for  two  years,  and  a 
Council  of  thirteen  members  elected  for  four  years. 
The  experience  of  Indiana,  Illinois,  and  Michigan 
was  bearing  fruit.  As  an  integral  part  of  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Michigan,  Wisconsin  had  developed  a  ca- 
pacity for  self-government  which  rendered  the  pre- 
paratory first  stage  unnecessary.  "Whether  this  fact 
consciously  influenced  the  framers  of  the  Organic 
Act  or  not,  it  is  at  any  rate  certain  that  the  demo- 
cratic tendencies  that  were  shaping  National  politics 
were  beginning  to  be  reflected  in  the  laws  for  the 
formation  of  Territories. 

General  Henry  Dodge  was  appointed  as  the  first 
Governor  of  the  Territory,  and  John  S.  Homer  was 
commissioned  Secretary.  At  Mineral  Point  on  July 
4, 1836,  as  one  of  the  incidents  of  the  holiday  celebra- 
tion, the  Governor  and  other  officials  took  the  oath 
of  office  and  were  duly  installed  as  officers  of  the 
Territory. 

Henry  Dodge  brought  to  the  Territorial  govern- 
orship a  wide  experience  in  frontier  affairs.  He 
had  grown  up  in  the  wilderness  and  knew  the  needs 
of  the  frontier;  his  long  and  varied  official  service 
provided  him  with  a  fund  of  experience  upon  which 
he  could  draw  when  difficult  problems  presented 
themselves  for  solution.  He  was  a  man  of  strong 
physique,  forceful  and  decisive  in  his  words  and  ac- 


146      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

tions,  and  dignified  in  appearance.  His  early  educa- 
tion had  been  scanty  and  mostly  confined  to  the 
rough  school  of  experience ;  but  he  made  up  in  rugged 
perseverance  and  in  strength  of  intellect  what  he 
lacked  in  schooling.  In  politics  he  was  a  thorough- 
going Democrat ;  and  he  was  popular  with  the 
masses,  who  always  seemed  to  have  great  confidence 
in  him.265 

Among  the  six  counties  which  had  been  laid  out 
while  Wisconsin  was  still  a  part  of  the  Territory  of 
Michigan,  the  Governor  proceeded  to  apportion  the 
thirteen  Councillors  and  the  twenty-six  Representa- 
tievs  "as  nearly  equal  as  practicable".  This  proved 
a  delicate  task.  Crawford  County,  not  having  one- 
thirteenth  of  the  whole  population,  was  left  without 
representation  in  the  Council.  In  his  endeavor  to 
be  fair  the  Governor  allotted  to  Crawford  County 
two  members  of  the  House  of  Representatives  —  all, 
if  not  more  than  it  was  strictly  entitled  to.266  But 
the  people  of  Crawford  County  were  not  satisfied, 
contending  that  each  county  should  have  at  least  one 
Councillor.  A  public  indignation  meeting  was  held 
and  an  emphatic  protest  was  registered  against  the 
apportionment.267 

By  proclamation  Governor  Dodge  named  Octo- 
ber 10,  1836,  as  the  day  for  electing  members  of  the 
Council  and  House  of  Representatives  and  a  Dele- 
gate to  Congress.  The  proclamation  further  di- 
rected that  the  Legislative  Assembly  should  convene 
at  Belmont  in  Iowa  County  on  October  25.268  Craw- 


147 


ford  County  proceeded  to  elect  a  member  of  the 
Council  as  well  as  two  Representatives,  and  de- 
manded that  the  Governor  declare  the  election 
valid.269  This  the  Governor  refused  to  do,  and  in  his 
proclamation  announcing  the  results  of  the  election 
he  ignored  the  Councilor  from  Crawford  County.270 
The  Legislative  Assembly,  moreover,  stood  by  the 
Governor  in  refusing  to  give  the  protesting  county 
a  seat  in  the  Council,  and  thus  the  matter  ended. 

Governor  Dodge's  first  message  to  the  Legisla- 
tive Assembly  was  a  concise  and  businesslike  presen- 
tation of  the  needs  of  the  Territory.271  The  organ- 
ization of  a  judicial  system  and  the  division  of  the 
Territory  into  judicial  districts  was  the  first  subject 
considered.  Then  came  a  recommendation  that  a 
memorial  be  forwarded  to  Congress  on  the  subject 
of  extending  the  right  of  preemption  to  actual  set- 
tlers. He  thought  that,  considering  the  condition  of 
the  United  States  Treasury,  there  was  no  necessity 
for  selling  public  land  to  the  actual  settler  at  the 
price  of  one  dollar  and  a  quarter  an  acre,  and  that  in 
justice  the  price  should  be  reduced  and  graduated 
according  to  the  value  of  the  land. 

The  question  of  internal  improvements  also  re- 
ceived much  emphasis.  Governor  Dodge  recom- 
mended that  Congress  be  asked  to  make  appropria- 
tions for  the  removal  of  obstructions  in  the  upper 
Mississippi,  for  the  construction  of  harbors  and 
light-houses  on  Lake  Michigan,  and  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  navigation  of  the  Fox  Eiver.  An  enter- 


148      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

prising  company  acting  under  a  charter  from  the 
Territory  of  Michigan  had  already  commenced  a 
canal  between  the  Wisconsin  and  Fox  rivers.  The 
further  improvement  of  the  Fox  Eiver  would  thus 
provide  water  communication  between  Lake  Michi- 
gan and  the  Mississippi,  and  would  greatly  facilitate 
commerce  and  the  transportation  of  troops  and  mu- 
nitions of  war  in  case  of  necessity.  The  improve- 
ment of  the  navigation  of  the  Eock  Eiver  would  in 
the  same  way,  he  thought,  open  up  a  large  region; 
while  a  railroad  from  Lake  Michigan  to  the  Missis- 
sippi would  repay  donations  of  land  by  the  govern- 
ment for  that  purpose. 

Governor  Dodge  further  recommended  that 
Congress  be  asked  to  donate  one  township  of  land 
for  the  establishment  of  an  academy.  Believing 
that  in  times  of  peace  preparations  should  be  made 
for  war,  he  suggested  the  passage  of  a  law  organiz- 
ing a  company  of  sixty  volunteer  mounted  riflemen 
for  each  county  in  the  Territory  and  that  these 
troops  be  properly  equipped,  drilled,  and  inspected. 
Finally,  Governor  Dodge  showed  his  practical  wis- 
dom by  announcing  that  in  regard  to  the  location  of 
the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the  Territory, 
he  would  give  his  assent  to  whatever  the  members 
of  the  legislature  thought  would  best  promote  the 
public  good.  A  number  of  town  sites  had  been  laid 
out  by  speculators  each  of  whom  was  trying  to  make 
his  particular  city  the  metropolis  of  the  Territory. 
The  strife  for  supremacy  was  very  bitter,  and  the 


GOVERNORS  DODGE  AND  DOTY  149 

Governor  would  have  gained  nothing  by  taking  sides 
in  the  quarrel. 

Governor  Dodge's  first  message  is  worthy  of 
detailed  examination,  since  it  reflects  the  dominant 
ideas  in  the  new  Territory.  The  Legislative  As- 
sembly proceeded  to  carry  out  many  of  the  Gov- 
ernor's recommendations,  and  the  crowning  achiev- 
ment  of  the  first  session  was  the  location  of  the 
capital  of  the  Territory  at  Madison,  the  newly 
platted  town  so  charmingly  situated  within  encir- 
cling lakes.272 

The  Territorial  legislature  met  for  its  second 
session  on  November  6,  1837,  at  Burlington  in  Des 
Moines  County  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Mississippi 
River.  In  his  message  Governor  Dodge  emphasized 
the  necessity  for  preemption  laws  and  for  a  more 
thoroughly  equipped  militia.  He  called  attention  to 
various  subjects  upon  which  legislation  was  needed, 
and  considered  at  some  length  the  dispute  over  the 
boundary  line  between  the  State  of  Missouri  and  the 
Territory  of  Wisconsin.273 

A  number  of  important  laws  were  enacted  by 
the  legislature  at  its  second  session  —  perhaps  the 
most  noteworthy  being  an  act  abolishing  imprison- 
ment for  debt.  Several  universities  and  seminaries 
were  established,  and  Congress  was  asked  to  make  a 
special  appropriation  for  a  University  of  the  Terri- 
tory of  Wisconsin  to  be  located  at  Madison.  Con- 
siderable time  was  also  devoted  to  enacting  legisla- 
tion for  the  organization  of  new  counties  and  for 


locating  county  seats.274  Indeed,  Governor  Dodge 
seemed  to  think  that  the  Assembly  was  carrying  this 
line  of  legislation  too  far,  for  in  his  first  veto  mes- 
sage he  considered  at  some  length  his  reasons  for 
returning  a  bill  fixing  the  boundaries  of  several  coun- 
ties and  establishing  the  seats  of  justice. 

The  changes  of  the  location  of  two  county  seats 
were  considered  by  Dodge  to  be  particularly  objec- 
tionable :  in  one  case  he  declared  that  he  could  not 
think  of  a  single  good  reason  for  the  proposed  re- 
moval. "In  a  territory  like  ours",  he  said,  "great 
care  and  caution  should  be  exercised  in  the  location 
of  the  seats  of  justice  in  the  first  place ;  and  where 
settlements  are  formed  on  the  faith  of  our  acts, 
changes  should  not,  in  my  opinion,  be  made  without 
the  prospect  of  some  substantial  benefit  to  the  peo- 
ple, and  upon  their  wish  unequivocally  expressed  to 
that  effect. ' '  And  he  pointedly  remarked  that  a  pro- 
vision for  a  direct  vote  of  the  people  upon  such  ques- 
tions would  meet  with  his  approval.275  It  was  for- 
tunate that  the  Governor  put  a  check  upon  the  legis- 
lature in  this  matter,  for  the  prevalence  of  specu- 
lators and  town-boomers  stimulated  an  unnecessary 
activity  in  the  location  of  county  seats. 

The  details  of  the  remaining  years  of  Governor 
Dodge's  administration  need  not  be  related.  In  gen- 
eral it  may  be  said  that  the  policies  already  outlined 
were  followed  throughout  the  period.  Dodge,  per- 
haps more  than  any  of  the  other  Territorial  Gov- 
ernors of  the  Old  Northwest,  took  an  active  interest 


GOVERNORS  DODGE  AND  DOTY  151 

in  legislation.  Through  messages  and  by  more  di- 
rect and  personal  influences  he  secured  the  enact- 
ment of  a  large  number  of  laws  which  were  highly 
beneficial  to  the  Territory.  While  he  negotiated  a 
number  of  Indian  treaties,  his  duties  as  Superintend- 
ent of  Indian  Affairs  were  not  nearly  so  burdensome 
as  had  been  the  duties  of  his  predecessors  in  this 
respect.  Comparative  freedom  from  Indian  troubles 
and  from  perplexing  problems  of  settling  land  dis- 
putes and  relieving  distress  allowed  Dodge  to  devote 
himself  very  largely  to  civil  administration. 

On  the  whole  the  administration  of  Governor 
Dodge  was  peaceful  and  successful.  He  had  the  re- 
markable faculty  of  insisting  upon  his  prerogatives 
and  of  securing  compliance  with  his  wishes  without 
arousing  antagonism.  As  a  result  much  permanent 
good  was  accomplished  and  the  Territory  prospered 
under  his  wise  and  efficient  management  of  affairs. 

In  1841  President  Tyler  removed  Henry  Dodge 
for  political  reasons  and  appointed  James  Duane 
Doty  to  the  office  of  Governor  of  the  Territory  of 
Wisconsin. 

Governor  Doty  had  served  in  various  official 
capacities  in  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  and  when 
appointed  to  the  governorship  he  was  Delegate  to 
Congress  from  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin.  He  was, 
therefore,  well  acquainted  with  the  needs  and  condi- 
tions of  the  Territory.  In  private  life  he  seems  to 
have  been  a  man  of  genial  and  pleasing  personality, 
and  it  has  been  said  that  he  was  never  defeated  in 


152      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

a  contest  for  an  elective  office.276  But  in  his  official 
capacity  Doty  was  aggressive  and  set  in  his  ways, 
and  he  was  so  intolerant  of  opposition  that  he  made 
many  enemies.  He  was  so  impulsive  and  at  times 
his  unreasonable  passion  carried  him  to  such  ex- 
tremes that  it  impaired  his  usually  sound  judgment; 
Consequently  his  administration  was  the  stormiest 
in  the  history  of  the  Territory.277 

The  Governor  began  sowing  the  seeds  of  discord 
the  moment  he  assumed  office,  by  asserting  in  his  in- 
augural address  that  no  law  of  the  Territory  was 
effective  until  expressly  approved  by  Congress.  He 
then  proceeded  to  disregard  such  laws  as  ran  counter 
to  his  ideas  of  what  was  necessary  in  given  cases.278 
This  was  a  usurpation  of  power  which  the  Legis- 
lative Assembly  naturally  resented.  Doty  also  ir- 
ritated the  legislature  by  denying  the  right  of  that 
body  to  appoint  certain  officials. 

When  the  legislature  convened  in  1842  the  Gov- 
ernor took  further  occasion  to  assert  his  authority. 
It  had  been  provided  by  law  that  the  annual  session 
of  the  legislature  should  commence  on  the  first  Mon- 
day in  December.  On  December  5,  1842,  the  mem- 
bers organized  and  waited  upon  the  Governor,  but 
to  their  chagrin  he  informed  them  that,  "not  con- 
ceiving that  the  legislative  assembly  had  authority 
by  law  to  meet  at  the  present  time,  he  had  no  com- 
munication to  make  to  them".279  Doty  gave  as  his 
reason  that  there  had  been  no  appropriation  to  cover 
the  expenses  of  a  session  of  the  legislature.  A  bitter 


153 


controversy  ensued  and  it  was  not  until  March  6, 
1843,  that  the  legislature  finally  convened  with  the 
Governor's  approval.280  Whether  the  Governor  was 
animated  in  this  case  by  spite,  desire  to  display  his 
authority,  or  simply  through  obstinacy,  his  conduct 
in  any  event  seems  indefensible. 

From  this  time  on  there  was  constant  warfare 
between  Governor  Doty  and  the  legislature.  The 
question  of  statehood  in  1843,  the  appointment  of  a 
Treasurer  for  the  Territory  two  years  earlier,  and 
various  other  subjects  furnished  opportunities  for 
clash  of  opinions.  Moreover,  Doty  had  so  long  been 
interested  in  land  speculations  that  it  was  difficult  to 
persuade  a  certain  class  of  the  people  that  he  was  not 
using  his  office  to  further  his  own  ends.  His  finan- 
cial policies  were  continually  attacked  in  the  news- 
papers, and  it  has  been  said  that  he  never  entirely 
cleared  himself  from  some  of  the  charges  in  relation 
to  his  financial  dealings.281  It  is  probable,  however, 
that  political  considerations  and  the  insecure  bank- 
ing system  of  the  Territory  were  responsible  for 
much  of  the  opposition  to  Governor  Doty. 

Finally,  in  1844  the  President  removed  Doty  and 
appointed  Nathaniel  P.  Tallmadge,  a  New  York  pol- 
itician, in  his  place.  Tallmadge  had  been  a  member 
of  the  New  York  legislature  and  had  held  a  seat  in 
the  United  States  Senate.  He  was  a  man  of  consid- 
erable ability,  and  during  the  one  year  in  which  he 
held  the  office  of  Governor  of  the  Territory  of  Wis- 


154      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

consin  his  relations  with  the  legislature  were  friend- 
ly and  harmonious. 

Political  changes  were  now  beginning  to  be  con- 
sidered in  the  light  of  necessities.  Governor  Tall- 
madge  had  scarcely  become  accustomed  to  the  duties 
of  his  office  before  the  accession  of  James  K.  Polk  to 
the  presidency  in  1845  made  another  change  neces- 
sary, according  to  political  custom ;  and  on  April  8, 
1845,  the  President  reappointed  Henry  Dodge  as 
Governor.  Dodge  had  been  serving  as  Delegate  to 
Congress  and  with  the  benefit  of  this  added  expe- 
rience he  resumed  the  duties  of  the  governorship. 

The  Territory  had  been  growing  rapidly  in  pop- 
ulation, and  by  this  time  the  people  began  to  desire 
larger  measures  of  self-government.  In  April,  1846, 
the  question  of  the  advisability  of  forming  a  State 
government  was  put  to  a  vote,  and  the  result  showed 
that  the  people  were  overwhelmingly  in  favor  of  the 
change.  After  one  unsuccessful  attempt  a  constitu- 
tion was  adopted,  and  on  May  29,  1848,  Wisconsin 
was  duly  admitted  into  the  Union  as  a  State.282 

Perhaps  the  most  noticeable  feature  of  the  Ter- 
ritorial period  in  Wisconsin  is  the  growing  interest 
in  politics  on  the  part  of  the  people.  Governors 
changed  as  the  party  in  power  in  the  Nation  changed, 
and  the  spirit  of  partisan  politics  began  to  influence 
the  conduct  of  affairs  in  the  Territory.  It  is  chiefly 
in  this  respect  that  the  history  of  the  Territory  of 
Wisconsin  differs  from  that  of  the  earlier  Territories 
in  the  Old  Northwest.  Although  the  Governor  still 


155 


remained  the  dominating  influence  in  the  Territory, 
he  was  shorn  of  his  power  in  many  minor  details 
and  a  tendency  towards  decentralization  is  clearly 
discernible. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES 

CHAPTER   I 

1  An  excellent  account  of  the  long  struggle  between 
France  and  England  for  supremacy  in  the  New  World  will 
be  found  in  the  writings  of  Francis  Parkman. 

2  See  Macdonald's  Select  Charters  and  Other  Docu- 
ments Illustrative  of  American  History,  1606-1775,  pp.  261- 
266 ;  and  Winsor's  The  Mississippi  Basin,  p.  419. 

3  The  Annual  Register,  1763,  Part  I,  p.  211.     See  also 
Winsor's  The  Westward  Movement,  p.  2. 

4  For  good,  brief  accounts  of  the  Revolution  in  the 
West  see  Roosevelt's  The  Winning  of  the  West  (Statesman 
Edition),  Vol.  II,  pp.  1-175;  and  Thwaites's  How  George 
Rogers  Clark  Won  the  Northwest.      The  Draper  Collection 
of  Manuscripts  in  the  library  of  The  State  Historical  So- 
ciety of  Wisconsin  at  Madison  is  rich  in  materials  on  this 
period. 

5  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  1-33.     It  would  seem, 
however,  that  location  and  other  natural  conditions  also 
exerted  a  great  influence  in  retarding  American  settle- 
ment along  the  northern  border.     For  instance,  Minnesota 
lagged  many  years  behind  Iowa.     The  line  of  settlement 
appears  to  have  been  a  determining  factor,  but  doubtless 
many  other  causes  contributed  to  the  result. 

6  See  American  State  Papers,  Foreign  Relations,  Vol. 
I,  for  papers  relating  to  Spain's  control  of  the  navigation 


160      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

of  the  Mississippi  River,  and  American  State  Papers,  In- 
dian Affairs,  Vol.  I,  for  papers  dealing  with  Spanish  at- 
tempts to  incite  the  Indians  to  warfare  against  the  United 
States.  Ogg's  The  Opening  of  the  Mississippi  and  Green's 
The  Spanish  Conspiracy  are  monographs  dealing  especially 
with  this  subject. 

7  For  material  dealing  with  the  relations  of  the  Eng- 
lish with  the  Indians  during  the  Revolutionary  period  see 
American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I ;  The  Haldi- 
mand  Papers   in  the  Collections  and  Researches  Made  by 
the  Pioneer  and  Historical  Society  of  the  State  of  Michigan, 
Vol.  X ;  and  the  Draper  Collection  of  Manuscripts  in  the 
library  of  the  State  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin  at 
Madison. 

8  See  McLaughlin's  The  Western  Posts  and  the  British 
Debts   in  the  Annual  Report  of  the  American  Historical 
Association,  1894,  pp.  412-444. 

9  Roosevelt's  The  Winning  of  the  West    (Statesman 
Edition),  Vol.  I,  pp.  38-42;  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  325-328.     Great 
stress  is  rightly  laid  on  this  point,  and  it  is  reiterated  and 
illustrated  throughout  the  four  volumes  of  Mr.  Roosevelt's 
work.     For  interesting  examples  of  the  trend  of  this  in- 
dividualism in  the  Southwest  consult  also  Turner's  Western 
State-Making  in  the  Revolutionary  Era  in  The  American 
Historical  Review,  Vol  I,  pp.  70,  251. 

10  In  a  note  in  Roosevelt 's  The  Winning  of  the  West 
(Statesman  Edition),  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  329-330;  it  is  stated  on 
evidence  from  manuscripts  in  the  Department  of  State  at 
Washington,  D.  C.,  that  in  1787  there  were  103  adult  male 
Americans  in  Vincennes  and  137  in  the  Illinois  villages. 
In  the  Manuscript  Papers  and  Records  of  the  Territories, 
Vol.  I,  at  Washington,  there  appears  a  list  of  heads  of  fam- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  161 

ilies  settled  at  Fort  Vincennes  before  1783,  prepared  by 
Winthrop  Sargent,  Secretary  of  the  Northwest  Territory. 
This  list  includes  121  heads  of  families,  with  23  widows  and 
one  deserted  wife,  making  a  total  of  145.  Winsor  says 
there  were  "perhaps  a  thousand  French,  and  they  num- 
bered four  to  one  American." — Winsor 's  The  Westward 
Movement,  p.  275. 

11  See  Turner's  Rise  of  the  New  West,  pp.  67-83. 

CHAPTER  II 

12  This  act  was  passed  in  October,  1778.  —  Hening's 
Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  IX,  p.  552.     In  May,  1780,  the  legis- 
lature of  Virginia  amended  the  act  and  provided  that  it 
should    continue    in    force   for    another   year. —  Hening's 
Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  X,  p.  303.     So  as  a  matter  of  fact 
that  form  of  government  was  valid  only  until  1781,  since  it 
was  not  again  renewed.     It  was  actually  enforced  in  the 
Northwest,  however,  for  several  years  subsequent  to  that 
time. 

The  present  discussion  of  the  government  of  this 
country  as  a  county  under  Virginia  follows  very  closely 
Boyd's  The  County  of  Illinois  in  The  American  Historical 
Review,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  623-635 ;  but  the  point  of  view  in  this 
book  is  somewhat  different  from  that  of  Mr.  Boyd's  article. 

13  Boyd's  The  County  of  Illinois  in  The  American  His- 
torical Review,  Vol.  IV,  p.  624. 

14  John  T odd's  Record-Book  in  the  Chicago  Historical 
Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  289-294;  Henry's  Patrick 
Henry,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  212-216 ;  and  Mason's  Col,  John  T  odd's 
Record-Book  in  the  Fergus  Historical  Series,  No.  12,  p.  51. 

15  Green's  Historic  Families  of  Kentucky,  pp.  210-211. 


162      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

16  Draper  Collection  —  Clark  MSS,  Vol.  60,  p.  4,  State 
Historical    Society    of   Wisconsin.     There    are    sixty-four 
large  bound  volumes  of  the  George  Rogers  Clark  papers. 

17  Letter  from  George  Rogers  Clark  to  George  Mason, 
quoted  in  Thwaites's  How  George  Rogers  Clark  Won  the 
Northwest,  p.  64. 

18  Nine  judges  were  elected  at  Kaskaskia,  seven  at  Ca- 
hokia,  and  nine  at  Vincennes. — John  Todd's  Record-Book 
in  the  Chicago  Historical  Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  p. 
295. 

19  See  Moses 's  Illinois,  Historical  and  Statistical f  Vol. 
I,  p.  160. 

20  John  Todd's  Record-Book  in  the  Chicago  Historical 
Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  304,  308-314. 

21  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  II,  p. 
102;  and  John  Todd's  Record-Book  in  the  Chicago  Histor- 
ical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  p.  301. 

22  Draper  Collection  — Clark  MSS,  Vol.  49,  Nos.  78, 
79;  and  John  Todd's  Record-Book  in  the  Chicago  Histor- 
ical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  305,  306. 

23  Letters  from  the  Illinois  County  are  full  of  this  dis- 
satisfaction.—  Draper    Collection  —  Clark   MSS,   Vol.   49, 
Nos.  71,  72,  73,  78 ;  John  Todd  Papers  in  the  Chicago  His- 
torical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  p.  319;  and  Palmer's 
Calendar  of  Virginia  State  Papers,  Vol.  I,  pp.  379,  460. 

24  Palmer's  Calendar  of  Virginia  State  Papers,  Vol.  I, 
p.  379. 

25  It  would  appear  from  Demunbrunt  's  petition  to  the 
Virginia  government  that  he  had  been  appointed  by  Colonel 
Winston  as  commandant  of  the  village  of  Kaskaskia. —  Pal- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  163 

mer  and  McRae's  Calendar  of  Virginia  State  Papers,  Vol. 
V,  p.  408.  The  endorsement  in  the  record-book,  however, 
reads:  "THIMOTHE  DEMUNBRUNT,  Lt.  Comd't.  Par  inter- 
im".— John  T odd's  Record-Book  in  the  Chicago  Histor- 
ical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  IV,  p.  316. 

26  See  letter  from  John  Dodge,  Indian  Agent  at  Fort 
Jefferson,  to  John  Todd  in  June,  1780. —  Draper  Collection 
—  Clark  MSS,  Vol.  29,  No.  36 ;  and  letter  from  Winston  to 
Todd,  October  24,  1780. —  Palmer's  Calendar  of  Virginia 
State  Papers,  Vol.  I,  p.  381. 

27  Draper  Collection  — Clark  MSS,  Vol.  23,  p.  228; 
Vol.  50,  Nos.  5,  70. 

28  See  above,  note  12. 

29  Draper  Collection  —  Clark  MSS,  Vol.  60,  pp.  262- 
263. 

30  Carbonneaux  had  come  on  a  mission  to  represent  the 
condition  of  the  Illinois  country,  and  made  the  statement 
to  Walker  Daniel,  who  under  date  of  "New  Holland,  Feb. 
3,  1783 ' ',  reported  it  to  the  Board  of  Commissioners  for  the 
Western  Department  of  Virginia. —  Draper  Collection  — 
Clark  MSS,  Vol.  60,  pp.  211-212. 

CHAPTEE  III 

31  For  instance  see  Journals  of  the  American  Congress: 
From  1774  to  1788  (Way  and  Gideon  Edition),  Vol.  IV, 
pp.  341,  574,  575,  688,  811. 

32  A  concise  account  of  the  early  attempts  to  form  a 
government  for  the  Old  Northwest,  written  by  Peter  Force 
and  consisting  largely  of  extracts  from  the  Journals  of  Con- 
gress, may  be  found  in  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Papers,  Vol. 
II,  pp.  603-608. 


164      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

33  See  Cutler's  Life,  Journals  and  Correspondence  of 
Rev.  Manasseh  Cutler,  Vol.  I,  Ch.  IV. 

34  Journals  of  the  American  Congress:    From  1774  to 
1788  (Way  and  Gideon  Edition),  Vol.  IV,  pp.  751-754.  The 
text  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787,  together  with  a  list  of  refer- 
ences, will  be  found  in  convenient  form  in  Shambaugh's 
Documentary  Material  Relating  to  the  History  of  Iowa,  Vol. 
I,  pp.  47-55. 

35  For  discussions  on  the  authorship  of  the  Ordinance, 
see  The  Works  of  Daniel  Webster   (Twentieth  Edition), 
Vol.  Ill,  pp.  263-264;  Cutler's  Life,  Journals  and  Corres- 
pondence of  Rev.  Manasseh  Cutler,  Vol.  I,  pp.  343,  350; 
Poole's  Dr.  Cutler  and  the  Ordinance  of  1787  in  the  North 
American  Review,  Vol.  CXXII,  pp.  229-265;  Farrand's 
The  Legislation  of  Congress  for  the  Government  of  the  Or- 
ganized Territories  of  the  United  States,  p.  9;  Barrett's 
Evolution  of  the  Ordinance  of  1787;  and  Hinsdale's  The 
Old  Northwest,  pp.  263-279. 

36  See  appropriation  acts  in  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  I.     The  regular  items  were  included  in  the 
yearly  appropriation  bills,  and  special  appropriations  were 
made  from  time  to  time  as  needed. 

37  Article  5  of  the  Articles  of  Compact  in  the  Ordi- 
nance. 

38  See  decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States  on  this  point  in  the  case  of  Strader  v.  Graham,  10 
Howard  82.     See  also  Jameson's  A  Treatise  on  Constitu- 
tional Conventions,  p.  179. 

39  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  p.  50. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  165 

CHAPTER  IV 

40  See  Greene 's  The  Provincial  Governor  in  the  Eng- 
lish Colonies  of  North  America  in  the  Harvard  Historical 
Studies,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  177-195. 

41  Act  of  September  11,  1789.—  United  States  Statutes 
at  Large,  Vol.  I,  p.  67.     This  act  also  fixed  the  salary  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Territory  at  $750  per  year,  and  that 
of  each  of  the  three  Judges  at  $800.     The  Governor's  sal- 
ary remained  unchanged  until  1836,  when  the  Governor  of 
the  Territory  of  Wisconsin  was  given  for  his  services  as 
Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  $2,500  per 
year  in  accordance  with  a  provision  of  the  Organic  Act. 

42  See  appropriation  acts  of  1791,  1797, 1809, 1825,  and 
1835. —  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  pp.  226, 
500;  Vol.  II,  p.  523;  Vol.  IV,  pp.  189,  766. 

43  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  pp.  54,  333, 
539. 

44  Smith's  The  Liberty  and  Free  Soil  Parties  in  the 
Northwest  in  the  Harvard  Historical  Studies,  Vol.  VI,  p.  1. 

45  See  Reinsch's  Colonial  Government,  pp.  271,  311. 

CHAPTEE  V 

46  Journals  of  the  American  Congress:     From  1774 
to  1788  (Way  and  Gideon  Edition),  p.  786. 

47  Burnet  's   Notes   on   the   Early   Settlement   of   the 
North-Western  Territory,  pp.  374,  375,  378. 

48  Winsor  's  The  Westward  Movement,  p.  302. 

49  Darlington 's  Journal  and  Letters  of  Col.  John  May, 
of  Boston  Relative  to  Two  Journeys  to  the  Ohio  Country  in 
1788  and  '89,  p.  68. 


166      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

50  Darlington 's  Journal  and  Letters  of  Col.  John  May, 
of  Boston  Relative  to  Two  Journeys  to  the  Ohio  Country  in 
1788  and  '89,  pp.  83,  85.     St.  Glair's  inaugural  address 
may  be  found  in  Smith 's  The  St.  Glair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp. 
53-56. 

51  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  78-79. 

52  For  these  recommendations  see  Smith's  The  St.  Clair 
Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  61-63.     The  militia  law  is  found  in 
Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  92-93. 

53  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  92-103. 
These  laws  covered  such  subjects  as  the  militia,  the  system 
of  courts,  oaths  of  office,  crimes  and  punishments,  the  reg- 
ulation of  marriages,  the  appointment  of  coroners,  and  the 
time  of  commencing  civil  actions  and  instituting  criminal 
prosecutions. 

54  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  pp.  285-286. 

55  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  19-20. 

56  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  I,  p.  148. 

57  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  94-96. 

58  "  I  saw  a  record  proceeding  at  Prairie  du  Rocher 
against  a  colored  man  for  the  murder  of  a  hog.     At  that 
day  no  prosecuting  attorney  attended  the  court,  and  I  pre- 
sume the  grand-jury  found  the  form  of  an  indictment  in 
some  book,  for  murder,  and  applied  it  to  the  negro  and  the 
hog.     It  was   malicious  mischief  in   destroying  the   hog, 
which  I  presume  was  the  offence  the  grand-jury  was  inves- 
tigating.    The  same  equitable  justice  may  have  been  done 
under  the  indictment  for  murder,  as  if  it  were  one  for  ma- 
licious mischief  and  prosecuted  by  the  ablest  attorneys  in 
the  country." —  Reynolds 's  The  Pioneer  History  of  Illinois, 
p.  181. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  167 

59  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  131,  165, 
166. 

60  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  107-109. 

61  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  344-346. 

62  Letter  of  July  31,  1788.—  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Pa- 
pers, Vol.  II,  pp.  69-72. 

63  Letter  from  St.  Clair  to  Judges  Parsons  and  Var- 
num,  August  7,  1788. —  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol. 
II,  p.  74. 

64  See  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  p.  266. 
The  following  extract  from  the  Cincinnati  Advertiser  of 
November  2,  1819,  is  characteristic  of  Judge  Symmes:     "I 
declare  the  earth  to  be  hollow,  and  habitable  within;  and 
constituted  of  a  number  of  concentric  spheres,  the  poles  of 
which  are  open  twelve  or  sixteen  degrees.     I  pledge  my  life 
in  support  of  this  truth,  and  am  ready  to  explore  the  con- 
cave, if  the  world  will  aid  and  support  me  in  the  under- 
taking.     JNO.    CLEVES   SYMMES/' — Draper   Collection  — 
Papers  of  John  C.  Symmes,  Vol.  I,  unclassified. 

65  Letter  dated  August  24,  1791. —  Draper  Collection 

—  Papers  of  John  C.  Symmes,  Vol.  I,  No.  3. 

66  "  I  believe  it  an  incontrovertible  truth, ' '  he  wrote, 
' '  that  a  large  and  respectable  part  of  the  people  will  never 
be   contented  while  you  hold  the  reins  of  government: 

—  If  therefore  you  have  the  interest  of  the  people  of  this 
territory  truly  at  heart,  as  you  say  you  have,  you  will  surely 
now  let  fall  the  curtain  to  your  administration". —  Letter 
from  John  C.  Symmes  to  Arthur  St.  Clair,  November  29, 
1800. —  Draper  Collection  —  Papers  of  John  C.  Symmes, 
Vol.  I,  No.  4. 


168      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

67  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  68,  73. 

68  On  February  12,  1795,  the  House  of  Representatives 
adopted  a  resolution  disapproving  of  the  laws  enacted  by 
the  Governor  and  Judges  of  the  Northwest  Territory  in 
1792. —  Annals  of  Congress,  2nd  Session,  3rd  Congress,  pp. 
721,  825,  830,  1214,  1223,  1227.     See  also  Howard's  An 
Introduction  to  the  Local  Constitutional  History  of  the 
United  States,  Vol.  I,  p.  409,  note. 

69  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  p.  286. 

70  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  211-212. 

71  Maxwell's  Code  (1796).     The  same  laws  are  to  be 
found  in  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  138-204. 

72  In  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Paper's,  Vol.  I,  p.  148,  the 
statement  is  made  that  in  September,  1788,  there  were  132 
people  on  the  Ohio.     Roosevelt  states  that  there  were  about 
4,000  inhabitants  in  the  French  villages  in  the  Illinois 
country.     Detroit,  which  was  an  old  settlement,  had  a  pop- 
ulation of  perhaps  2,000,  including  the  territory  immedi- 
ately adjoining. —  Roosevelt's  The  Winning  of  the  West 
(Statesman  Edition),  Vol.  I,  pp.  49,  51.     Detroit,  however, 
was  far  removed  from  the  direct  influence  of  the  Governor. 

73  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  I,  p.  192. 

74  Governor  St.  Clair  in  his  report  to  the  Secretary  of 
State  on  February  18,  1791,  said:     "Every  public  act  and 
communication,  of  what  kind  soever,  I  was  myself  obliged 
to  translate  into  French;  and  having  no  person  to  assist 
me,  it  made  the  business  extremely  troublesome  and  labor- 
ious."—  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  20. 

75  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  p.  32. 

76  See   Green's  The  Spanish   Conspiracy,  and  Ogg's 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  169 

The  Opening  of  the  Mississippi.  See  also  correspondence 
concerning  the  Kentucky  expedition  against  the  Spanish  on 
the  Mississippi. —  American  State  Papers,  Foreign  Affairs, 
Vol.  I,  pp.  454-460. 

77  Winsor's  The  Westward  Movement,  pp.  306-308. 

78  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  1,  con- 
tains numerous  documents  bearing  on  this  point.    See  also 
Burnet's  Notes  on  the  Early  Settlement  of  the  North-West- 
ern Territory,  pp.  164-167,  176-182;  and  Smith's  The  St. 
Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  p.  41. 

79  St.  Glair's  report  of  February  18,  1791,  contains  a 
review  of  the  whole  situation. —  American  State  Papers, 
Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  pp.  18-20. 

80  Roosevelt 's  The  Winning  of  the  West  (Statesman 
Edition),  Vol.  Ill,  p.  391.     In  July,  1788,  St.  Clair  com- 
plained that  the  government  of  the  State  of  New  York  was 
interfering  with  the  plans  of  the  National  government  re- 
garding the  making  of  a  treaty  with  the  Six  Nations. — 
Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  p.  49. 

81  Secret  Journals  of  the  Acts  and  Proceedings  of  Con- 
gress, Vol.  I,  pp.  276-279. 

82  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II;  and  Amer- 
ican State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  pp.  57,  58,  83-106, 
121.     For   Indian   treaties   negotiated   by   St.    Clair,   see 
United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  VII. 

83  Winsor's  The  Westward  Movement,  p.  429. 

84  The  committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  in 
their  inquiry  into  the  cause  of  the  defeat,  freed  Governor 
St.  Clair  from  blame. —  Annals  of  Congress,  2nd  Congress, 
pp.  1106-1113,  1309-1317.     St.  Glair's  report  of  the  defeat 


170      GOVEENOES  OF  THE  OLD  NOETHWEST 

is  found  in  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I, 
pp.  136-138.  Good  accounts  of  the  battle  are  given  in  Cap- 
tain Newman's  journal  of  the  St.  Clair  campaign  in  the 
Draper  Collection  —  Frontier  Wars  MSS,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  101- 
131,  and  in  other  papers  in  the  same  collection. 

85 ' '  Meanwhile  every  one  was  busy  seeking  where  to 
lay  the  blame.  The  Antifederal  sheets  declared  the  dis- 
aster was  due  to  the  Bank  and  the  Funding  bill.  .  .  .  The 
people  put  the  blame  on  St.  Clair,  and,  as  he  passed  through 
the  villages  on  his  return  home,  came  in  crowds  to  hiss  him 
and  taunt  him  with  jeers.  The  Secretary  of  War  thought 
the  defeat  was  to  be  ascribed  to  the  rawness  of  the  troops. 
The  committee  of  the  House  of  Eepresentatives  laid  it  to 
the  lateness  of  the  season  and  the  negligence  of  Hodgdon, 
the  quartermaster,  and  the  dishonesty  of  William  Duer, 
the  contractor  for  army  supplies.  But  there  were  those 
who  thought  the  month  of  November  and  a  lazy  officer  had 
nothing  to  do  with  an  Indian  surprise." — McMaster's  A 
History  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,  Vol.  II,  p.  47. 

86  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  pp.  285-286. 

87Burnet's  Notes  on  the  Early  Settlement  of  the 
North-Western  Territory,  pp.  64-70. 

88  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  pp.  285-286. 

89  Letter  from  St.  Clair  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  Decem- 
ber 14,  1794.— Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp. 
332-333. 

90  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  p.  26. 

91  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  p.  187. 

92  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  pp.  97-101. 

93  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  p.  143.     Con- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  171 

gress   later  modified  this   act  somewhat. —  United   States 
Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  I,  p.  482. 

94  Chase's  The  Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  p.  190.     This 
law  was  taken  from  an  act  which  was  passed  by  the  colonial 
legislature  of  Virginia,  and  which  had  long  since  been  re- 
pealed when  it  was  adopted  by  the  codifiers.     Technically, 
therefore,  the  law  was  void. 

95  Smith's  The  St.  Glair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  441-442. 

96  Speech  of  Governor  St.  Clair  before  the  first  Terri- 
torial legislature,  December  19,   1799. —  Smith's  The  St. 
Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  477-478. 

97  Hinsdale's  The  Old  Northwest,  p.  300. 

98Burnet's  Notes  on  the  Early  Settlement  of  the 
North-Western  Territory,  pp.  328-334;  and  Walker's  His- 
tory of  Athens  County,  Ohio,  p.  137. 

99  Ferris 's  The  States  and  Territories  of  the  Great 
West,  p.  166. 

100  The  letter,  which  is  given  in  Smith's  The  St.  Clair 
Papers,  Vol.  I,  pp.  244-246,  is  as  follows : 

Department  of  State, 

Washington,   November   22,  1802. 
ARTHUR  ST.  CLAIR,  Esq.: 

SIR: — The  President  observing,  in  an  address  lately  delivered 
by  you  to  the  convention  held  at  Chillicothe,  an  intemperance  and 
indecorum  of  language  toward  the  Legislature  of  the  United  States, 
and  a  disorganizing  spirit  and  tendency  of  very  evil  example,  and 
grossly  violating  the  rules  of  conduct  enjoined  by  your  public  station, 
determines  that  your  commission  of  Governor  of  the  North-western 
Territory  shall  cease  on  the  receipt  of  this  notification. 
I  am,  etc., 

JAMES  MADISON. 

101  Hinsdale's  The  Old  Northwest,  p.  312. 

102  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  173. 


172      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

103  See  the  first  Constitution  of  Ohio  in  Chase 's  The 
Statutes  of  Ohio,  Vol.  I,  p.  75. 

CHAPTEE  VI 

104  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  58. 
This  act  went  into  force  on  July  4,  1800. 

105  American  State  Papers,  Miscellaneous,  Vol.  I,  p. 
206. 

106  In  an  autobiographical  sketch  dated  July  20,  1839, 
published  in  a  local  New  York  newspaper,  Harrison  stated 
that  although  his  instructions  allowed  him  to  draw  what- 
ever money  he  desired  for  the  administration  of  Indian  af- 
fairs, he  made  it  a  practice  to  charge  only  for  the  time 
actually  employed  in  a  specific  negotiation. — -Draper  Col- 
lection—  Harrison  Papers,  Vol.  I.       See  also  Harrison's 
letter  to  the  editor  of  the  Ohio  Confederate,  October  18, 
1839,  quoted  in  Burr's  The  Life  and  Times  of  William 
Henry  Harrison,  pp.  297-300. 

107  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  93. 

108  Laws  of  Indiana  Territory,  1801,  pp.  5,  6. 

109  Laws  of  Indiana  Territory,  1801,  pp.  28-29. 

110  Laws  of  Indiana  Territory,  1801,  1802,  1803;  and 
Howard's  An  Introduction  to  the  Local  Constitutional  His- 
tory of  the  United  States,  p.  426. 

111  Laws  of  Indiana  Territory,  1801,  1802,  1803. 

112  Dunn's  Indiana,  p.  295. 

113  See  a  letter  from  Judge  Parke  to  Governor  Posey, 
February  7,  1814,  and  a  memorial  to  Congress  from  the 
legislature  of  the  Indiana  Territory,  October  18,  1814. — 
Dillon's  A  History  of  Indiana,  pp.  543-545. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  173 

114  Act  of  February  24,  1815.—  United  States  Statutes 
at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  213. 

115  Letter  from  Harrison  to  the  editor  of  the  Ohio 
Confederate,  October  18,  1839,  quoted  in  Burr's  The  Life 
and  Times  of  William  Henry  Harrison,  pp.  297-300. 

116  See  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  VII. 

117  The  average  price  paid  for  Indian  lands  in  this 
region  seems  to  have  been  less  than  one  cent  per  acre.     See 
letter  from  Henry  Dearborn  to  James  Robertson  and  Silas 
Dinsmore. —  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I, 
p.  700. 

118  Jefferson's  message  of  January  30,  1808. —  Richard- 
son's Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
438-439. 

119  See  Draper  Collection  —  Harrison  Papers  for  let- 
ters and  papers  dealing  with  Harrison's  management  of 
Indian  affairs.     See  also  Dawson's  A  Historical  Narrative 
of    the    Civil    and    Military    Services    of    Major-General 
William  H.  Harrison. 

120  See  Harrison 's  letter  to  Madison,  January,  1802, — 
American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  pp.  122-123. 

121  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  277. 

122  por  discussions  of  the  land  policy  of  the  United 
States  government  see  Donaldson's  The  Public  Domain; 
and  Sato's  History  of  the  Land  Question  in  the  United 
States  in  the  Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in  Histor- 
ical and  Political  Science,  Vol.  IV.     See  United  States  Stat- 
utes at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  343,  note,  for  a  list  of  acts  relat- 
ing to  public  lands  in  Indiana. 

123  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  II,  p. 


174      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

102.     See  also  Davidson  and  Stuve's  A  Complete  History 
of  Illinois  from  1673  to  1873,  pp.  235-239. 

124  Report  of   December   17,    1811. —  American   State 
Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  II,  p.  223. 

125  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  VI,  p. 
23.     Many  of  the  Governor's  grants  were  confirmed  by 
Congress. —  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  447. 

126  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  283. 

127  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  331. 

128  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  444. 

129  See  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I, 
pp.  68,  160;  Smith's  The  St.  Clair  Papers,  Vol.  II,  pp.  447, 
451;  and  Dunn's  Indiana,  pp.  284-293,  297,  298,  368-370, 
for  instances  of  such  petitions. 

130  See  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I, 
p.  160. 

131  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  160. 

132  Dunn 's  Indiana  deals  especially  with  the  slavery 
question  as  it  affected  the  history  of  Indiana.     See  also 
Harris's  The  History  of  Negro  Servitude  in  Illinois,  pp.  7- 
15,  for  a  summary  of  slave  legislation  and  conditions  in  the 
Indiana  Territory. 

133  Dunn's  Indiana,  pp.  299-301,  320-324. 

134  Quoted  in  Dillon 's  A  History  of  Indiana,  p.  415. 

135  Dunn's  Indiana,  p.  326. 

136  Acts  of  Congress  of  February  26,  1808,  and  March 
3,  1811. —  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  pp.  469, 
659.     See  also  Farrand's  The  Legislation  of  Congress  for 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  175 

the  Government  of  the  Organized  Territories  of  the  United 
States,  p.  26. 

137  Act  of  Congress  of  February  27,  1809.—  United 
States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  525. 

138  Adams 's  History  of  the  United  States  of  America, 
Vols.  VI-IX;  McMaster's  A  History  of  the  People  of  the 
United  States,  Vols.  Ill  and  IV,  and  other  standard  histo- 
ries contain  detailed  accounts  of  this  period. 

139  Dunn 's  Indiana,  pp.  412,  417. 

140  Niles'  Register,  Vol.  I,  p.  388;  and  American  State 
Papers,  Miscellaneous,  Vol.  II,  p.  277. 

141  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  289. 

142  Dillon 's  A  History  of  Indiana,  pp.  557-559 ;  and 
Dunn's  Indiana,  pp.  423-424. 

143  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  399. 

CHAPTEE  VII 

144  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  309. 

145  John  Reynolds  in  The  Pioneer  History  of  Illinois 
(Second  Edition),   p.   346,  says:     "I  presume,   in   1803, 
there  were  scarcely  three  thousand  souls,  French  and  Amer- 
icans, in  all  Illinois.     No  census  at  that  day  was  taken 
and  it  is  difficult  to  be  certain  in  the  number;  but  judging 
from  the  best  data  in  my  power  and  my  personal  observa- 
tion, I  think  the  above  is  correct."     In  1809  it  was  esti- 
mated that  the  population  of  the  Illinois  Territory  was 
about  9,000. —  Davidson  and  Stuve's  A  Complete  History 
of  Illinois  from  1673  to  1873,  p.  245. 

146  Legislative   memorials   were   sent   to   Congress   in 


176      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

1806,  1807,  and  1808.— Davidson  and  Stave's  A  Complete 
History  of  Illinois  from  1673  to  1873,  p.  241. 

147  Davidson  and  Stave's  A  Complete  History  of  Illi- 
nois from  1673  to  1873,  p.  242. 

148  Davidson  and  Stuve's  A  Complete  History  of  Illi- 
nois from  1673  to  1873,  p.  242;  and  Reynolds 's  The  Pio- 
neer History  of  Illinois  (Second  edition),  p.  173. 

149  Davidson  and  Stave's  A  Complete  History  of  Illi- 
nois from  1673  to  1873,  p.  242. 

150  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  514. 
This  act  went  into  effect  March  1,  1809. 

151  See  Clay's  letter  of  recommendation,  in  Edwards 's 
History  of  Illinois  from  1778  to  1833;  and  Life  and  Times 
of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  27. 

152  See  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois  from  1778  to 
1833;  and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  for  a  biog- 
raphy of  Governor  Edwards. 

153  "Washburne  's  The  Edwards  Papers  in  the  Chicago 
Historical  Society's  Collection,  Vol.   Ill,  p.   17,   editor's 
note. 

154  The  original  certificate  of  authority  from  the  Judges 
is  among  the  Governor's  papers  in  the  library  of  the  Chi- 
cago Historical   Society. —  Edwards   Papers  —  Autograph 
Letters,  Vol.  50,  p.  9. 

156  Brown's  Early  History  of  Illinois  in  the  Fergus 
Historical  Series,  No.  14,  pp.  100-101. 

156  Moses's  Illinois,  Historical  and  Statistical,  Vol.  I, 
p.  241. 

157  See  correspondence  in  "Washburne 's  The  Edwards 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  177 

Papers  in  the  Chicago  Historical  Society's  Collection,  Vol. 
III. 

iss  This  point  is  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  Edwards 
seemed  to  consider  land  speculation  by  a  Governor  as  per- 
fectly legitimate,  and  that  he  speculated  continually.  Both 
St.  Clair  and  Harrison,  as  has  been  pointed  out,  considered 
such  practices  as  questionable. 

159  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  p.  3. 

160  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  pp.  3-4. 

161  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  pp.  4-6. 

162  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  p.  7. 

163  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  28-29.      The 
address  is  here  printed  in  full,  as  is  also  the  reply  of  the 
Governor. 

164  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  33. 

165  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  35. 

166  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  33. 


178      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

167  See  letter  from  John  Pope,  United  States  Senator 
from  Kentucky,  to  Governor  Edwards,  November  9,  1809. 
He  asked  Edwards  how  he  could  justify  himself  if  the  peo- 
ple should  elect  an  improper  person.     "Your  course  would 
appear  to  be  fair,"  he  said,  "and  calculated  to  give  satis- 
faction ;  but  I  give  it  as  my  decided  opinion  that  it  will  be 
more  correct  and  better  policy  to  assume  the  responsibil- 
ity."—  Washburne's  The  Edivards  Papers  in  the  Chicago 
Historical  Society's  Collection,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  40. 

168  See  letter  from  Albert  Gallatin,  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  to  Edwards,  September  8,  1809,  expressing  his 
appreciation  of  the  difficulties  of  the  Governor 's  position. — 
Washburne's  The  Edwards  Papers  in  the  Chicago  Histor- 
ical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  46-47. 

169  Petition  of  over  one  hundred  citizens  of  Randolph 
County,  east  of  the  Big  Muddy  River. —  Washburne's  The 
Edwards  Papers  in  the  Chicago  Historical  Society 's  Collec- 
tion, Vol.  Ill,  p.  72. 

170  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  67. 

171  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  and 
Niles'  Register,  Vol.  II,  contain  many  letters  from  Governor 
Edwards  concerning  Indian  affairs.     See  also  the  Edivards 
Papers. —  Autograph  Letters,  in  the  library  of  the  Chicago 
Historical  Society. 

172  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  289. 

173  American   State  Papers,   Indian  Affairs,   Vol.    I, 
passim. 

174  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
803-804. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  179 

175  Davidson  and  Stave's  A  Complete  History  of  Illi- 
nois from  1673  to  1873,  p.  249. 

176  Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War  of  1812-1814  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
IX,  pp.  72-73.    A  list  of  these  forts  giving  their  location 
will  be  found  on  pp.  71-72. 

177  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
797-804. 

178  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  38-54;  and 
Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War  of  1812-1814  in  the  Publica- 
tions of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol.  IX,  pp. 
74-94. 

179  See  Gomo  's  speech  in  Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War 
of  1812-1814  in  the  Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Histor- 
ical Library,  Vol.  IX,  pp.  85-87. 

180  See  evidence  presented  in  American  State  Papers, 
Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  passim;  and  Niles'  Register,  Vol.  II, 
p.  295;  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  105-107;  Vol.  VI,  pp.  113-114. 

181  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  p. 
797. 

182  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
807-808.     See  also  Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War  of  1812- 
1814  in  the  Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Li- 
brary, Vol.  IX,  pp.  101-112. 

183  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  p. 
808. 

184  Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War  of  1812-1814  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
IX,  p.  115. 


180      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

185  Annals  of  Congress,  1st  Session,  12th  Congress,  pp. 
1679-1682. 

186  See  Nties'  Register,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  155  (Heald's  Re- 
port) ;  and  Kirkland's  The  Chicago  Massacre  of  1812. 

187  See  the  Edwards  Papers  —  Autograph  Letters,  in 
the  library  of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society;  and  Ed- 
wards's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833;  and  Life 
and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  75,  337,  346. 

188  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  75. 

189  See  the  following  letters :     Governor  Edwards  to 
William  Eustis,  Secretary  of  War,  August  25  and  Septem- 
ber 6,  1812,  and  January  2,  1813;  and  Governor  Edwards 
to  Governor  Harrison,  August  26,  1812. —  Edwards 's  His- 
tory of  Illinois  from  1778  to  1833;  and  Life  and  Times  of 
Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  337-342,  345-346. 

190  See  the  Edwards  Papers  —  Autograph  Letters,  es- 
pecially Vols.  49  and  50,  in  the  library  of  the  Chicago  His- 
torical Society;  and  Stevens 's  Illinois  in  the  War  of  1812- 
1814  in  the  Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Li- 
brary, Vol.  IX,  pp.  115-169. 

191  Report   of    the    Commissioners  —  American    State 
Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  II,  p.  102.     Reynolds,  in  The 
Pioneer  History  of  Illinois  (Second  edition),  p.  352,  states 
that  Michael  Jones,  one  of  the  Commissioners,  was  excitable 
and  irritable,  and  that  he  was  easily  swayed  by  passion  and 
prejudice. 

192  See  letters  quoted  in  Edwards 's  History  of  Illi- 
nois, from  1778  to  1833;  and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Ed- 
wards, pp.  296,  306. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  181 

193  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  797. 

194  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  p.  7. 

195  Turner's  Rise  of  the  New  West,  p.  76. 

196  Pope's  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Illinois,  Vol.  II,  p. 
673. 

197  Pope's  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Illinois,  Vol.  I,  p. 
33. 

198  See  Shaw's  Local  Government  in  Illinois  in  the 
Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in  Historical  and  Po- 
litical Science,  Vol.  I,  No.  3,  pp.  9-11. 

199  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  515. 

200  See  letter  from  Governor  Edwards  to  the  Secretary 
of  War,  January  26,  1812.     In  a  letter  to  R.  M.  Johnson  on 
March  14,  1812,  Governor  Edwards  stated  that  there  were 
not  over  two  hundred  and  twenty  freeholders  in  the  whole 
Territory,  although  the  total  population  was  12,282  —  Ed- 
wards's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833;  and  Life  and 
Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  296,  306.     See  also  David- 
son and  Stuve's  A  Complete  History  of  Illinois  from  1673 
to  1873,  p.  283. 

201  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  308. 

202  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  307. 

203  Act  of  May  20,  1812.  —  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  741. 

204  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 


182      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

III,  p.  26;  and  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to 
1833;  and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  67,  306. 

205  Executive  Register  for  the  Illinois  Territory  in  the 
Publications  of  the  Illinois  State  Historical  Library,  Vol. 
Ill,  p.  28. 

206  Pope's  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Illinois,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
33,  90-115. 

207  Quoted  in  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778 
to  1833;  and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  85. 

208  Edwards 's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  pp.  85-92. 

209  Edward's  History  of  Illinois,  from  1778  to  1833; 
and  Life  and  Times  of  Ninian  Edwards,  p.  92. 

210  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  237, 
327. 

211  Edwards  Papers  —  Autograph  Letters,  especially 
Vol.  48,  in  the  library  of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society; 
and  Washburne's  The  Edwards  Papers  in  the  Chicago  His- 
torical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  Ill,  passim.     See  also  let- 
ters from  Shadrach  Bond,  Delegate  to  Congress  from  Illi- 
nois, to  Governor  Edwrards,  complaining  of  this  inattention, 
especially  on  the  part  of  the  Secretary  of  War,  John  Arm- 
strong. —  Edwards  Papers  —  Autograph  Letters,  Vol.  48. 

212  See  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  VII,  pas- 
sim. 

213  Edwards   Papers  —  Autograph  Letters,   especially 
Vol.  51,  in  the  library  of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society; 
and  Washburne  's  The  Edwards  Papers  in  the  Chicago  His- 
torical Society's  Collection,  Vol.  Ill,  passim. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  183 

214  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  428, 
536. 

CHAPTEE  Vm 

215  Act  of  January  11,  1805.  —  United  States  Statutes 
at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  309.     This  act  "was  to  take  effect  June 
30,  1805. 

216  Cooley  's  Michigan,  p.  149. 

217  Letter  from   Governor  Hull  to  the  Secretary  of 
State,  James  Madison,  August  3,  1805.  —  Letters  and  Pa- 
pers from  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  Bureau  of  Rolls  and 
Library,  Washington,  D.  C.;  and  Cooley 's  Michigan,  pp. 
154,  156-157. 

218  Letter  from  Judge  A.  B.  Woodward  to  James  Mad- 
ison. —  Letters  and  Papers  from  the  Territory  of  Michi- 
gan, Bureau  of  Rolls  and  Library,  Washington,  D.  C. 

219  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  249. 

220  Quoted  in  Farmer's  Detroit  in  Powell's  Historic 
Towns  of  the  Western  States,  p.  105. 

221  Report  of  Governor  Hull  and  Judge  Woodward, 
October  10,  1805.  —  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands, 
Vol.  I,  pp.  247-249. 

222  Act  of  April  21,  1806.  —  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  398. 

223  Cooley's  Michigan,  pp.  156-157. 

224  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
248,  249. 

225  Farmer's  Detroit  in  Powell's  Historic  Towns  of 
the  Western  States,  p.  104. 


184      GOVEENOES  OF  THE  OLD  NOETHWEST 

226  Governor  Hull  seemed  to  consider  it  a  hardship  that 
he  was  obliged  to  live  at  a  "small  farmer's  house"  when 
Detroit  was  in  ashes  and  no  other  accommodations  were  to 
be  had.     See  letter  from  Hull  to  James  Madison,  Letters 
and  Papers  from  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  Bureau  of 
Eolls  and  Library,  Washington,  D.  C. 

227  See  Letters  and  Papers  from  the  Territory  of  Mich- 
igan, Bureau  of  Eolls  and  Library,  Washington,  D.   C. ; 
Nttes'  Register,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  25,  26,  37-39,  92;  Parish's 
The  Robert  Lucas  Journal  of  the  War  of  1812  During  the 
Campaign  Under  General  Hull;  and  Winsor's  Narrative 
and  Critical  History  of  America,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  384,  428-429. 

228  Letter   from   Judge   A.   B.   Woodward  to   James 
Monroe,  March  22,  1813.  —  Papers  and  Records  of  the  Ter- 
ritories, Vol.  I,  Bureau  of  Eolls  and  Library,  Washington, 
D.  C. 

229  por  an  account  of  the  British  military  occupancy 
as  given  by  an  eye-witness,  see  Sheldon 's  The  Early  History 
of  Michigan,  pp.  397-408. 

230  Lewis  Cass  had  studied  law  in  the  office  of  Eeturn 
J.  Meigs  and  had  been  admitted  to  the  bar.     He  had  been 
in  the  Ohio  legislature,  and  had  served  as  United  States 
Marshall  for  Ohio.     He  took  an  active  part  in  the  War  of 
1812  and  was  attached  to  Governor  Hull's  army  at  the 
time  of  the  surrender  of  Detroit,  for  which  he  openly  and 
indignantly  denounced  Hull.     He  was  later  an  officer  under 
General  Harrison,  and  attained  the  rank  of  Brigadier- Gen- 
eral.    For  a  biography  of  Cass  see  McLaughlin's  Lewis 
Cass. 

CHAPTEE  IX 

231  jror  an  excellent  resume  of  these  conditions  and  of 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  185 

the  services  of  Governor   Cass,  see  McLaughlin's  Lewis 
Cass,  pp.  88-98. 

232  Lockwood  's  Early  Times  and  Events  in  Wisconsin 
in  the  Collections  of  the  State  Historical  Society  of  Wis- 
consin, Vol.  II,  p.  115;  and  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass,  p. 
122. 

233  American  State  Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  263. 

234  Report  made  on  March  18,  1806.  —  American  State 
Papers,  Public  Lands,  Vol.  I,  p.  263. 

235  Act  of  March  3,  1807.  —  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  437. 

236  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  II,  p.  502 ; 
Vol.  Ill,  p.  724;  Vol.  IV,  p.  260. 

237  Smith's  The  Life  and  Times  of  Lewis  Cass,  p.  142. 

238  Richardson's  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presi- 
dents, Vol.  I,  pp.  570-571;  and  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass, 
pp.  97-98. 

239  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  98-99. 

240  Papers  of  James  Duane  Doty  in  the  Collections  of 
the  State  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin,  Vol.  XIII,  pp. 
163-219.     This  is  the  official  journal  of  the  expedition.    See 
also  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  116-122. 

241  Young's  Life  and  Public  Services  of  General  Lewis 
Cass,  pp.  83-84.     The  number  for  each  tribe  is  here  given, 
and  the  total  number  of  warriors  is  estimated  at  8,890. 

242  McLaughlin's   Lewis    Cass,   p.    131;   and   Smith's 
The  Life  and  Times  of  Lewis  Cass,  p.  155. 

243  McLaughlin's  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  118-120;  and  Smith's 
The  Life  and  Times  of  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  127-130. 


186      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

244  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  VII,  passim. 

245  Smith's  The  Life  and  Times  of  Lewis  Cass,  pp.  102- 
104. 

246  Quoted  in  Smith's  The  Life  and  Times  of  Lewis 
Cass,  p.  105. 

247  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  769. 
Two  years  later  by  another  act  of  Congress  the  number  of 
Councilors  was  increased  to  thirteen,  out  of  twenty-six 
chosen  by  the  people. 

248  Act  of  February  5,  1825.  —  United  States  Statutes 
at  Large,  Vol.  IV,  p.  80. 

249  Act  of  January  29,  1827.—  United  States  Statutes 
at  Large,  Vol.  IV,  p.  200. 

250Lamnan's  History  of  Michigan,  p.  227. 

251  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  Vol.  I,  pp.  83, 
113,  206,  255 ;  Vol.  II,  pp.  115,  138. 

252  Campbell 's   Outlines   of   the   Political  History  of 
Michigan,  p.  405. 

253  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  Vol.  I,  p.  661. 

254  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Michigan,  Vol.  II,  p.  279. 

255  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  IV,  p.  200. 

256  See  Bemis  's  Local  Government  in  Michigan  and 
the  Northwest  in  the  Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in 
Historical  and  Political  Science,  Vol.  I,  No.  5. 

257  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  IV,  p.  560. 
See  also  Cooley's  Michigan,  pp.  197-198. 

258  See  Cooley's  Michigan,  pp.  205-210. 

259  Governor  George   B.   Porter  of  the  Territory  of 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  187 

Michigan  died  of  cholera  in  July,  1834.  In  1835  John  S. 
Homer  of  Virginia  was  appointed,  but  he  was  so  poorly 
adapted  to  the  rigorous  border  Territory  that  the  people 
virtually  laughed  him  out  of  the  country.  —  See  Cooley's 
Michigan,  pp.  212,  220-222. 

260  Act  of  June  28,  1834.  —  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  IV,  p.  701.     The  country  comprised  within  the 
present  States  of  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota  east  of  the 
Mississippi  had  been  attached  to  the  Territory  in  1818, 
when  Illinois  was  admitted  into  the  Union. 

261  Cooley's  Michigan,  p.  210. 

262  Michigan  was  admitted  into  the  Union  January  26, 
1837.  —  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  V,  p.  144. 

263  See  Cooley's  Michigan,  pp.  213-224. 

CHAPTEE  X 

264  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  V,  p.  10. 

265  See  Pelzer's  Augustus  Caesar  Dodge,  pp.  11-37,  for 
a  sketch  of  the  life  of  Henry  Dodge. 

266  Branson's  Memoir  of  Hon.  Thomas  Pendleton  Bur- 
nett in  the  Collections  of  the  State  Historical  Society  of 
Wisconsin,  Vol.  II,  pp.  308-310.     See  also  the  proclamation 
of  Governor  Dodge.  —  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proc- 
lamations of  the  Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  50. 

267  Strong's  History  of  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin,  p. 
223. 

268  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  50. 

269  Letter  from  Thomas  Pendleton  Burnett  to  Governor 


188      GOVERNORS  OF  THE  OLD  NORTHWEST 

Dodge,  October  17,  1836.  —  Collections  of  the  State  His- 
torical Society  of  Wisconsin,  Vol.  II,  pp.  308-309. 

270  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  53. 

271  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  3-11. 

272  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Wisconsin,  1836,  pp.  49-50. 

273  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  12-24.     The  Territory  of 
Wisconsin  at  this  time  included  the  country   comprised 
within  the  present  States  of  Iowa,  Minnesota,  and  the  east- 
ern half  of  North  Dakota  and  South  Dakota. 

27 *  Laws  of  the   Territory   of   Wisconsin,   1837-1838, 
passim. 

275  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  29-32. 

276  Thompson's  A  Political  History  of  Wisconsin,  p.  46. 

277  See  Thompson 's  A  Political  History  of  Wisconsin, 
pp.  44-47. 

278  See  Tuttle  's  An  Illustrated  History  of  the  State  of 
Wisconsin,  pp.  224-225 ;  and  Journal  of  the  Council  of  the 
Territory  of  Wisconsin,  1841-1842,  pp.  14-36. 

279  Journal  of  the  Council  of  the  Territory  of  Wiscon- 
sin, 1842-1843,  p.  6 ;  and  Tuttle 's  An  Illustrated  History  of 
the  State  of  Wisconsin,  p.  231. 

280  Smith's  The  History  of  Wisconsin,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  294. 

281  Thompson's  A  Political  History  of  Wisconsin,  p.  37. 

282  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  IX,  p.  233. 


INDEX 


INDEX 


ALLEGHANIES,  character  of  coun- 
try west  of,  consigned  to  In- 
15;  colonies  east  of,  16;  coun- 
try west  of,  consigned  to  In- 
dians, 18;  desire  of  soldiers  to 
settle  west  of,  31;  uncertainty 
as  to  course  of  people  west  of, 
36 

Alton    (Illinois),  96 

Armstrong,  John,  neglect  of 
West  by,  182 

Articles  of  Confederation,  experi- 
ence under,  40 

Atlantic  coast,  colonies  on,  15,  16 

BELMONT     (Wisconsin),    meeting 

of  legislature  at,  146 
Bill  of  Eights,  provisions  of,  in 

Ordinance  of  1787,  32 
Block-houses,  description  of,  102- 

103 
Bond,    Shadrach,    complaint    of, 

182 
Bounty   lands,    survey   for,    131; 

location  of,  131 

Braddock,  Edward,  defeat  of,  65 
British  (see  English) 
Burlington    (Iowa),    meeting    of 

legislature   at,   149 
Burnet,  Jacob,  statement  by,  48- 

49 
Burnett,   Thomas  Pendleton,   187 


CAHOKIA  (Illinois  Territory),  75; 
Indian  council  at,  106 

Canada,  French  in,  16;  acquisi- 
tion of,  by  England,  17;  lords 
of  soil  in,  29;  northwest  trib- 
utary to,  118 

Carbonneaux,  petition  of,  29; 
reference  to,  163 

Carlisle  (Illinois),  96 

Cass,  Lewis,  appointment  of,  as 
Governor,  126;  difficulties  con- 
fronting, 127-128;  efforts  of, 
to  relieve  distress,  128 ;  volun- 
teer company  raised  by,  128; 
Indians  subdued  by,  128;  con- 
fidence restored  by,  128;  hin- 
drance to,  129;  local  govern- 
ment restored  by,  129;  efforts 
of,  to  instill  American  ideas, 
129;  democratic  views  of,  129- 
130;  troubles  of,  with  land 
problem,  130;  land  policy  of, 
131;  efforts  of,  to  overcome 
prejudice,  131;  exploring  ex- 
pedition of,  132 ;  dealings  of, 
with  Indians,  132-134;  diffi- 
culties of,  with  English,  134- 
136;  first  message  of,  138; 
recommendations  of,  138-139; 
devotion  of,  to  Territory,  139; 
extension  of  right  of  suffrage 
urged  by,  139;  influence  of, 
in  shaping  local  government, 


192 


INDEX 


139;  improvements  made  by, 
140 ;  debt  of  Michigan  to,  140 ; 
appointment  of,  as  Secretary 
of  War,  140 ;  successor  of,  141 ; 
broad  statesmanship  of,  143; 
sketch  of  life  of,  184 

Central  America,  Spanish  settle- 
ments in,  16 

Channing,  Edward,  acknowledg- 
ments to,  11 

Chariton   (Missouri),  96 

Chillicothe  (Ohio),  St.  Clair  in- 
sulted at,  72;  removal  of  seat 
of  government  from,  73 ;  speech 
by  St.  Clair  at,  73 

Chippewas,  council  of  Edwards 
with,  106 

Cincinnati,  sittings  of  Court  at, 
67;  meeting  of  legislature  at, 
70;  removal  of  seat  of  govern- 
ment to,  73 

Clark,  Dan  E.,  acknowledgments 
to,  10 

Clark,  George  Eogers,  West  saved 
by,  18,  118;  reference  to,  24; 
letter  from  Patrick  Henry  to, 
26;  effect  of  presence  of,  on 
Indians,  26,  27;  departure  of, 
from  Illinois  country,  28 

Clay,  Henry,  recommendation  of, 
94 

Columbus,  discoveries  of,  16 

Commissioners,  Land,  work  of, 
84-85 

Common  Law,  addition  to  prin- 
ciples of,  67-68;  establishment 
of,  in  Northwest  Territory,  69 

Congress,  Territorial  officers  ap- 
pointed by,  32,  33;  Territorial 
law  disapproved  by,  51;  rais- 


ing of  troops  authorized  by, 
65 ;  act  of,  relative  to  repeal  of 
laws,  66;  acts  of,  relative 
to  judicial  system,  67;  memori- 
als to,  71,  93,  144;  Indiana 
Territory  established  by  act  of, 
75-76;  desire  of,  to  admit  Ohio, 
75;  land  offices  established  by, 
83;  jurisdiction  of  Indiana  ex- 
tended by,  85;  Louisiana  Ter- 
ritory established  by,  85;  In- 
diana admitted  by  act  of,  90; 
Indiana  Territory  divided  by, 
92,  119;  Illinois  Territory  es- 
tablished by,  94;  land  granted 
by,  for  relief  of  Detroit,  123; 
appropriations  by,  to  relieve 
distress,  128 

Congress  of  the  Confederation, 
petitions  to,  31 ;  attempts  of,  to 
provide  government  for  West, 
31;  Ordinance  of  1787  passed 
by,  32 ;  experience  of  members 
of,  40,  42;  St.  Clair  elected  by, 
48;  St.  Clair  president  of,  48 

Connecticut,  122 

Constitution  of  the  United  States, 
Ordinance  of  1787  adapted  to 
provisions  of,  38 

Constitutional  Convention,  Fed- 
eral, 31;  controversy  between 
Governor  and,  73;  meeting  of, 
in  Indiana,  90 

Cooley,  T.  M.,  statement  by,  120 

Corydon  (Indiana  Territory),  con- 
stitutional convention  at,  90 

Council,  members  of,  selected,  70 

Counties,  establishment  of,  50, 
53 ;  veto  of  bills  relative  to,  70- 
71;  apportionment  among,  146 


INDEX 


193 


County  Lieutenant,  powers  and 
duties  of,  24;  appointment  of 
Todd  as,  25 

Court  of  Common  Pleas,  jurisdic- 
tion of,  52 ;  composition  of,  52 

Courts,  system  of,  in  Northwest 
Territory,  52-53 ;  irregular 
holding  of,  75,  92;  establish- 
ment of,  in  Michigan,  129 

Crawford  County,  trouble  be- 
tween Dodge  and  people  of, 
146-147 

Creoles,  difficulties  in  dealing 
with,  61 

Crimes  and  punishment,  law  rela- 
tive to,  51,  68-69,  113,  138 

Currency,  depreciation  of,  27, 
127-128 

DANIEL,  Walker,  163 

Dearborn,  Henry,  letter  from,  173 

Delegate  to  Congress,  experience 
of  Harrison  as,  77;  election  of, 
by  people,  88,  112;  election  of, 
in  Indiana,  93;  need  for,  112; 
election  of,  in  Illinois,  113; 
election  of,  in  Wisconsin,  146- 
147;  Doty  as,  151;  experience 
of  Dodge  as,  154 

Democracy,  growth  of,  in  Old 
Northwest,  22,  23;  growth  of, 
in  Indiana  Territory,  88;  ele- 
ments of,  in  Michigan,  129-130 

Demunbrunt,  Thimoth6,  28;  peti- 
tion from,  162;  endorsement 
by,  163 

Des  Moines  County   (Iowa),  149 

Detroit,  British  possession  of,  62 ; 
establishment  of  land  office  at, 
83;  surrender  of,  by  Hull,  107, 


125;  destruction  of,  by  fire, 
122;  suffering  at,  122;  tem- 
porary town  laid  out  at,  122; 
land  given  to  citizens  of,  123 ; 
reference  to,  130,  131,  184; 
Council  House  at,  138;  whip- 
ping-post at,  138;  population 
of,  168 

Dinsmore,  Silas,  letter  to,  173 

Dodge,  Henry,  biography  of,  6; 
appointment  of,  as  Governor, 
145;  oath  of  office  taken  by, 
145;  character  and  experience 
of,  145-146;  apportionment  by, 
146;  proclamation  by,  146, 
147;  support  of,  by  legislature, 
147;  first  message  of,  147-149; 
second  message  of,  149;  veto 
message  of,  150;  character  of 
administration  of,  150-151 ;  In- 
dian treaties  made  by,  151;  re- 
moval of,  151;  successor  to, 
151;  re-appointment  of,  154 

Dodge,  John,  163 

Doty,  James  Duane,  appointment 
of,  as  Governor,  151;  character 
and  experience  of,  151-152; 
troubles  between  legislature 
and,  152-153;  land  speculations 
of,  153;  reasons  for  opposition 
to,  153;  removal  of,  153 

Duer,  William,  dishonesty  of,  170 

Dunn,  J.  P.,  80 

EDUCATION,  provisions  of  Ordi- 
nance relative  to,  32 ;  provisions 
for,  in  Wisconsin,  149 

Edwards,  Ninian,  appointment 
of,  as  Governor,  94;  birth  and 
early  life  of,  94-95;  character 


194 


INDEX 


and  ability  of,  95-96;  compar- 
ison of,  with  St.  Clair  and  Har- 
rison, 95,  97;  popularity  of, 
96;  positions  held  by,  96;  com- 
mercial enterprises  of,  96;  ap- 
parent uneasiness  of,  96;  char- 
acter of  administration  of,  97; 
duties  of  office  assumed  by,  97 ; 
difficulties  confronting,  97-100; 
plan  of,  for  militia  elections, 
99-100;  need  of  action  on  part 
of,  100;  interpreters  employed 
by,  101;  information  concern- 
ing Indians  gained  by,  101; 
efforts  of,  to  secure  assist- 
ance, 102;  memorial  to,  102; 
confidence  of  people  in, 
102;  companies  of  rangers 
raised  by,  102;  preparations 
for  defense  directed  by,  102- 
103;  news  of  Prophet's  plans 
brought  to,  103;  expedition 
sent  out  by,  103 ;  speech  of, 
104;  difficulties  of,  in  Indian 
diplomacy,  104;  effort  of,  to 
conciliate  Indians,  104;  report 
of,  concerning  dangers  from 
Indians,  106;  frontier  forces 
strengthened  by,  107;  remon- 
strances of,  108;  inability  of, 
to  secure  aid  from  Kentucky, 
108 ;  differences  of  opinion  be- 
tween Harrison  and,  108-109; 
preemption  law  urged  by,  110; 
legislative  activities  of,  110; 
hesitancy  of,  to  call  election, 
111-112;  desire  of,  for  Dele- 
gate to  Congress,  112 ;  exten- 
sion of  suffrage  advocated  by, 
112;  curtailment  of  powers  of, 


113;  election  called  by,  113; 
views  of,  requested  by  legis- 
lature, 114;  harmony  between 
other  branches  of  government 
and,  114;  difficulties  of,  in 
securing  government  aid,  114- 
115;  Indian  treaties  made  by, 
115;  duties  of,  as  Superintend- 
ent of  Saline,  115-116;  influ- 
ence of,  116;  loyalty  of,  to 
Illinois,  116;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward governorship,  116;  later 
life  of,  117;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward speculation,  177 
Electors,  qualifications  of,  34 
England,  desire  of,  to  humble 
France,  16,  17;  governmental 
transformations  in,  17  j  rule  of 
colonies  by,  17 

English,  character  of  settlements 
of,  16;  border  warfare  between 
French  and,  17;  victory  of, 
over  French,  17;  unfriendly 
policy  of,  19;  alliances  of,  with 
Indians,  19;  failure  of,  to  re- 
linquish western  posts,  20;  sin- 
ister influence  of,  20;  Indians 
encouraged  by,  20;  character 
of  government  of  West  by,  24; 
friendliness  of  Indians  to,  29; 
unfriendliness  of,  to  Americans, 
62;  Indians  incited  by,  62,  63, 
100,  124,  127;  land  grants 
made  by,  62,  83;  evidence  of 
influence  of,  over  Indians,  105; 
rule  of,  in  Michigan,  125;  diffi- 
culties with,  in  Michigan,  134- 
136;  American  vessels  searched 
by,  136 


INDEX 


195 


Europe,  American  counterparts  of 

wars  in,  17 
Eustis,  William,  letter  to,  180 

FLORIDA,  Spanish  settlements  in, 
16;  cession  of,  to  England,  17 

Force,  Peter,  account  written  by, 
163 

Fort  Dearborn,  soldiers  at,  107; 
massacre  at,  107 

Fort  Duquesne,  capture  of,  17 

Fort  Madison,  soldiers  at,  107 

Fort  Massac,  soldiers  at,  107 

Fort  Eecovery,  75 

Forts,  description  of  early,  102- 
103 

Fox  River,  improvement  of,  147- 
148 

France,  territory  ceded  by,  to 
England,  17;  territory  ceded 
by,  to  Spain,  17;  elimination 
of,  from  North  America,  17; 
effect  of  policy  of,  18-19 

Franklin   (Missouri),  96 

French,  early  explorations  and 
settlements  of,  16;  chain  of 
forts  built  by,  16;  alliances  of, 
with  Indians,  16;  border  war- 
fare between  English  and,  17; 
victory  of  English  over,  17; 
encumbrances  inherited  from, 
19;  character  of  government  of 
West  by,  24;  land  grants  made 
by,  62,  83;  settlements  by,  92 

French  and  Indian  War,  St. 
Glair  in,  48 

French  settlers,  indifference  of, 
to  government,  27,  129;  atti- 
tude of,  toward  Virginia,  29; 
destitute  circumstances  of,  60, 


127 ;  difficulties  in  dealing  with, 
61,  63;  employment  of,  by  Ed- 
wards, 101 ;  confusion  of  land 
titles  of,  124 

Frontiersman,  character  of,  22- 
23 

GALLATIN,  Albert,  letter  from, 
178 

Gibson,  John,  executive  functions 
exercised  by,  89 

Gomo,  Levering  received  by,  103; 
speech  by,  104,  106 

Governor,  Provincial,  opposition 
to,  39;  similarity  of  Territorial 
Governor  to,  39,  46 

Governor,  Territorial,  importance 
of,  8,  9;  influence  of,  22;  ap- 
pointment of,  32,  42-43;  term 
of,  32,  42-43 ;  qualifications  of, 
32-33;  legislative  functions  of, 

33,  44-45;    administrative    du- 
ties of,  33,  44;  military  duties 
of,  33 ;  elections  called  by,  34, 
44;   relation  of,  to  legislature, 

34,  35;  veto  power  of,  35,  36; 
change  in  manner  of  appoint- 
ment of,  38 ;   Secretary  to  act 
in  absence  of,  38;  type  of,  pro- 
vided by  Ordinance,  39 ;  control 
by,   well   suited   to   West,   41; 
evolution   of  type  of,   42;    su- 
preme power  of,  42 ;  source  of 
power  of,  43;  responsibility  of, 
43,  45-46;  reports  of,  43;  resi- 
dence   and    property    qualifica- 
tions of,  43 ;  salary  of,  43,  165 ; 
duties  of,  as  Superintendent  of 
Indian    Affairs,    43;     appoint- 
ive power  of,  44;  counties  laid 


196 


INDEX 


out  by,  44;  payment  of, 
for  negotiating  Indian  treat- 
ies, 44;  concentration  of  power 
in  hands  of,  45 ;  need  for  broad 
powers  of,  45;  similarity  of,  to 
Provincial  Governor,  46;  char- 
acter of  government  dependent 
upon,  46;  change  in  appointive 
power  of,  137;  legislative 
powers  of,  curtailed,  144-145; 
dimunition  of  powers  of,  155 

Great  Britain,  territory  ceded  to, 
by  France,  17;  territory  ceded 
to,  by  Spain,  17;  war  declared 
with,  107  (see  England) 

Great  Lakes,  15 

HAMILTON  County  (Northwest 
Territory) ,  establishment  of, 
53 

Harmar,  Joseph,  statement  by, 
61 

Harrison,  William  Henry,  char- 
acter and  training  of,  77;  act 
relative  to  land  secured  by,  77 ; 
popularity  of,  78;  advantages 
of,  78,  81,  82;  legislative  ac- 
tivities of,  78-81;  able  admin- 
istration of,  81 ;  wise  policy  of, 
81;  appointment  of,  as  Indian 
commissioner,  82 ;  treaties 
made  by,  82;  conduct  of  In- 
dian affairs  by,  82-83;  success 
of  Indian  campaigns  of,  83; 
difficulties  of,  with  land  prob- 
lem, 83 ;  relief  of,  from  land 
troubles,  83-84;  jurisdiction  of, 
extended,  85;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward slavery,  86;  election 
called  by,  86;  conciliatory  pol- 


icy of,  86;  letter  written  by, 
86-87;  members  of  Council 
chosen  by,  87;  reliance  of  gov- 
ernment upon,  87;  activity  of, 
in  political  contests,  88;  cam- 
paigns of,  in  War  of  1812,  89; 
successor  to,  89 ;  relief  of,  from 
civil  duties,  89;  services  of,  to 
Indiana  Territory,  90-91;  ad- 
ministration of,  compared  with 
St.  Glair's,  91;  reference  to, 
95,  107,  115,  177;  comparison 
of  Edwards  with,  97;  victory 
of,  at  Tippecanoe,  105,  124; 
letter  from  Edwards  to,  106; 
difference  of  opinion  between 
Edwards  and,  108-109;  conduct 
of  Indian  affairs  left  to,  125; 
statement  by,  concerning  com- 
pensation, 172 

Hart,  Albert  Bushnell,  acknowl- 
edgments to,  11 

Harvard  University,  10 

Henry,  Patrick,  Todd  appointed 
by,  25;  instructions  of,  to 
Todd,  25;  letter  from,  to 
Clark,  26 

Hinsdale,  B.  A.,  statement  by,  73 

Horner,  John  S.,  appointment  of, 
as  Secretary,  145;  appoint- 
ment of,  as  Governor,  187; 
failure  of,  187 

Hull,  William,  surrender  of,  at 
Detroit,  107,  125;  campaign  to 
aid,  108;  appointment  of,  as 
Governor,  120;  character  of, 
120;  difference  between  Wood- 
ward and,  120;  relations  of, 
with  Judges,  120;  repeal  of 
restriction  favored  by,  121; 


INDEX 


197 


conditions  in  Territory  on  ar- 
rival of,  122;  efforts  of,  to  re- 
lieve distress,  122 ;  recommen- 
dation of,  to  Congress,  123; 
clashes  between  Woodward  and, 
123-124;  land  troubles  of,  124; 
troubles  of,  with  Indians,  124; 
successor  to,  126;  reference  to, 
184 

ILLINOIS,  evolution  of,  7;  admis- 
sion  of,  116,  117;  fortunate 
position  of,  118-119 

Illinois  country,  community  of 
interests  among  people  of,  92; 
anti-separationist  faction  in,  93 

Illinois  County,  establishment  of, 
24;  form  of  government  pro- 
vided for,  24-25;  provision  for 
garrison  in,  25 ;  election  of  offi- 
cers in,  26;  workings  of  gov- 
ernment of,  26-27;  courts  in, 
27;  unfavorable  conditions  in, 
27;  departure  of  Todd  from, 
28;  inharmonious  elements  in, 
28 ;  departure  of  Clark  from, 
28;  demoralization  of  govern- 
ment of,  28;  expiration  of  gov- 
ernment of,  29;  desperate  con- 
dition of,  29;  lawlessness  in, 
29,  30;  value  of  experience  in, 
30 

Illinois  Territory,  attempts  to 
secure  establishment  of,  93; 
establishment  of,  93,  94;  pro- 
visions of  organic  act  of,  94; 
extent  of,  94;  character  of,  94; 
Edwards  appointed  Governor 
of,  94;  Pope  appointed  Secre- 
tary of,  97;  beginning  of  ad- 


ministration in,  97;  controversy 
between  factions  in,  97-99; 
need  for  united  action  in,  100; 
Indian  troubles  in,  100-109; 
troops  in,  107;  conditions  in, 
during  War  of  1812,  109-110; 
land  troubles  in,  109-110;  laws 
of  Indiana  reenacted  in,  110; 
local  government  in,  110-111; 
political  status  of  inhabitants 
of,  111-112;  need  of  Delegate 
to  Congress  for,  112 ;  extension 
of  right  of  suffrage  in,  112- 
113 ;  second  stage  of  govern- 
ment established  in,  113;  laws 
passed  by  legislature  of,  113 ; 
judicial  system  modified  in, 
114;  neglect  of,  by  National 
government,  115;  salt  works  in, 
115-116;  immigration  to,  116; 
change  in  sentiment  of,  116; 
character  of  development  of, 
116;  influence  of  Edwards  in, 
116-117;  reference  to,  119,  120, 
145 

Illinois  villages,  French  settlers 
in,  61 ;  number  of  Americans 
in,  160 

Immigration,  effect  of  war  upon, 
109;  increase  of,  to  Michigan, 
132,  140 

Indiana,  evolution  of,  7;  for- 
mation of  State  government 
for,  81;  admission  of,  90;  for- 
tunate position  of,  118-119 

Indiana  Territory,  Iowa's  politi- 
cal inheritances  from,  5;  study 
of  administration  in,  9;  estab- 
lishment of,  75;  boundaries  of, 
75;  reasons  for  formation  of, 


198 


INDEX 


75;  population  of,  75;  govern- 
ment provided  for,  76;  pro- 
vision for  legislature  in,  76; 
development  of,  76-77;  Har- 
rison first  Governor  of,  77; 
advantages  of,  77 ;  organization 
of  government  in,  77;  popular- 
ity of  Harrison  in,  78;  laws  of 
Northwest  Territory  adopted 
by,  78;  method  of  enacting 
laws  in,  79;  source  of  laws  of, 
79;  dominance  of  Virginia 
statutes  in,  79 ;  judicial  proced- 
ure modified  in,  80;  clash  of 
jurisdictions  in,  80;  difficulties 
caused  by  revision  of  judicial 
system  in,  80;  administration 
in,  81;  local  government  in, 
81;  provision  of  act  creating, 
82;  conduct  of  Indian  affairs 
in,  82-83;  land  troubles  in, 
83-85;  country  west  of  Mis- 
sissippi attached  to,  85; 
question  of  slavery  in,  85-86; 
change  in  sentiment  of,  86; 
second  stage  of  government 
in,  86-87;  choice  of  Coun- 
cilors in,  87;  history  of  last 
years  of,  88 ;  extension  of  right 
of  suffrage  in,  88 ;  advanced 
character  of,  88-89;  part  of, 
in  War  of  1812,  89;  Posey 
appointed  Governor  of,  89; 
influence  of  Harrison  in,  90; 
growth  of  population  of,  90; 
claims  of,  for  statehood,  90; 
constitutional  convention  in, 
90;  saneness  in  development 
of,  91;  division  of,  92,  119; 


opposition  to  division  of,  93; 
excitement  over  division  of, 
93;  reference  to,  94,  116,  119, 
120,  145;  animosities  caused 
by  division  of,  97;  concentra- 
tion of  troops  in,  108;  laws 
of,  adopted  in  Illinois,  110, 
113;  privileges  granted  to 
people  of,  112 

Indians,  French  trade  with,  16; 
futility  of  consigning  West  to, 
18,  dealings  of  English  with, 
19;  resistance  of,  to  western 
settlement,  20;  encourage- 
ment of,  by  English  and 
Spanish,  20;  effect  of  pres- 
ence of  Clark  upon,  27; 
friendliness  of,  to  English, 
29;  inciting  of,  by  English, 
62,  100,  127;  hostility  of, 
to  white  settlers,  63,  100; 
presents  given  to,  by  English, 
63;  terror  caused  by,  64; 
dealings  of  St.  Glair  with,  64; 
defeat  of  St.  Clair  by,  65^ 
defeat  of,  by  Wayne,  65; 
dealings  of  Harrison  with,  82- 
83;  importance  of  land  ces- 
sion by,  82;  troubles  with,  in 
Illinois  Territory,  100-109 ; 
land  titles  of,  124;  dealings 
of  Hull  with,  124;  subduing 
of,  by  Cass,  128;  number  of, 
in  Michigan,  132;  troubles 
with,  in  Michigan,  132-134; 
dealings  of  Dodge  with,  151 

Internal  Improvements,  works 
of,  in  Michigan,  132,  140; 
Dodge's  recommendations  for, 
147-148 


INDEX 


199 


Iowa,    territorial   descent  of,   5; 

political    inheritances    of,     5; 

introduction    to    political    and 

constitutional    history    of,    5; 

early  development  of,  159 
Iowa  College,  10 
Iowa    County    (Wisconsin),    146 

JACKSON,  Andrew,  Cass  ap- 
pointed Secretary  of  War  by, 
140;  spoils  system  of,  141; 
Mason  appointed  Secretary 
by,  141 

James,     Colonel,     communication 
to    Cass   from,    134;    reply    of 
Cass  to,  135 
James  I,  Common  Law  prior  to 

reign   of,   69 

Jamestown,  founding  of,  16 
Jefferson,      Thomas,     St.      Clair 
dismissed  by,  73;  reference  to, 
82 ;  Hull  appointed  by,  120 
Johnson,       Allen,       acknowledg- 
ments to,  10 

Johnson,  R.  M.,  letter  to,  181 
Jones,  Michael,  character  of,  180 
Judges,  Territorial,  appointment 
of,  33;  term  of,  33;  qualifica- 
tions of,  33;  jurisdiction  of, 
33;  legislative  functions  of, 
33 ;  change  in  manner  of  ap- 
pointment of,  38;  inability  of, 
to  legislate  alone,  44;  judicial 
functions  of,  beyond  control 
of  Governor,  45;  militia  law 
proposed  by,  51;  law  enacted 
by  Governor  and,  51,  53;  Su- 
preme Court  made  up  of,  52; 
sensitiveness  of,  54;  contro- 
versy between  St.  Clair  and, 


54-55;  erratic  proposals  of, 
56;  character  and  ability  of, 
56;  limitation  on  law-making 
power  of,  57;  methods  of,  in 
enacting  laws,  57;  power  of 
repealing  laws  given  to  Gov- 
ernor and,  66;  wide  scope  of 
laws  adopted  by,  67;  codifica- 
tion of  laws  by,  67-69;  ad- 
vantages of,  in  Indiana  Terri- 
tory, 78;  legislative  acts  of, 
78,  121-122;  work  of,  ham- 
pered, 79;  jurisdiction  of,  in 
Indiana  extended,  85;  extra 
compensation  for,  85;  opinion 
of,  on  law,  114;  relation  of 
Governor  and,  in  Michigan, 
121,  123;  land  questions  set- 
tled by,  123 ;  legislative  powers 
of,  abolished,  144-145;  salary 
of,  165 

Judges  of  lower  courts,  powers 
of,  52 

Judicial  system,  organization  of, 
52;  modifications  of,  67,  80- 
81;  reorganization  of,  in  Illi- 
nois, 114;  organization  of,  in 
Wisconsin,  147 

KASKASKIA  (Illinois  Territory), 
arrival  of  Todd  at,  26;  French 
settlers  at,  61;  reference  to, 
75,  94,  96;  establishment  of 
land  office  at,  83;  land  claims 
in  District  of,  84;  settlements 
in  vicinity  of,  92;  arrival  of 
Edwards  at,  98;  meeting  of 
legislature  at,  113;  judges 
elected  at,  162 

Kentucky,    Spanish    attempts   to 


200 


INDEX 


secure  separation  of,  19;  back- 
woodsmen from,  in  Old  North- 
west, 21;  laws  from,  79;  life 
of  Edwards  in,  94-95;  failure 
of,  to  send  troops,  108;  ref- 
erence to,  122 

Kentucky  Long  Knives,  18 

Kentucky  River,  75 

Kickapoos,  council  of  Edwards 
with,  106 

Knox  County  (Northwest  Terri- 
tory), establishment  of,  53 

LAKE  Erie,  119 

Lake  Michigan,  92,  119;  desire 
for  new  government  west  of, 
144;  harbors  on,  147;  water 
and  land  communication  from, 
to  Mississippi,  148 

Land  Offices,  establishment  of, 
83 ;  result  of  establishment  of, 
83-85 

Laws,  Territorial,  enactment  of, 
in  Northwest  Territory,  51; 
disapproval  of,  by  Congress, 
51;  provision  of  Ordinance 
relative  to,  57,  58;  manner  of 
enactment  of,  57,  58;  attitude 
of  Congress  toward,  58 ; 
sources  of,  59;  act  providing 
for  repeal  of,  66;  broad  scope 
of,  67;  codification  of,  67-69; 
most  noticeable  feature  of,  68; 
adoption  of,  in  Indiana,  78-80; 
compilation  of,  in  Michigan, 
120;  manner  of  enactment  of, 
in  Michigan,  121-122 

Legislative  Assembly,  provision 
for,  in  Wisconsin,  145;  appor- 
tionment of  members  of,  146- 


147;  Dodge's  messages  to,  147- 
149;  troubles  between  Doty 
and,  152-153  (see  Legislature) 

Legislative  Council,  manner  of 
choosing  members  of,  34;  qual- 
ifications of  members  of,  34; 
functions  of,  34-35 ;  members  of, 
chosen  by  Harrison,  87;  right 
of  electing,  given  to  people, 
88,  112,  138,  139;  powers 
of,  in  Michigan,  136;  composi- 
tion of,  in  Michigan,  137;  ref- 
erence to,  144 

Legislature,  Territorial,  choice  of 
members  of,  34;  composition 
of,  34;  powers  of,  34-35;  rela- 
tion of,  to  Governor,  35;  meet- 
ing of  first,  70 ;  controversy  be- 
tween Governor  and,  70-72 ; 
election  of,  in  Illinois,  113; 
first  meeting  of,  in  Illinois, 
113;  act  of,  in  Illinois,  113- 
114;  character  of,  in  Michigan, 
136;  first  meeting  of,  in  Mich- 
igan, 138 

Levering,  Samuel,  expedition  of, 
103-104 

Liberty,  civil  and  religious,  guar- 
anteed by  Ordinance,  32 

Little  Chief,  speech  by,  104 

Limitation,  statute  of,  51 

Local  government,  establishment 
of,  50;  development  of,  50;  in- 
fluences in  shaping,  53-54,  137; 
compromise  character  of,  54; 
character  of,  in  Indiana,  81; 
character  of,  in  Illinois,  110; 
restoration  of,  in  Michigan, 
129;  changes  in,  in  Michigan, 
139 


INDEX 


201 


Louisiana,  cession  of,  to  Spain  by 
France,  17;  protection  of,  by 
Spanish,  61 

Louisiana,  District  of,  attached 
to  Indiana,  85;  separate  gov- 
ernment given  to,  85 

Louisiana  Purchase,  Territorial 
divisions  of,  5 

Louisiana  Territory,  establish- 
ment of,  85 

MACY,  Jesse,  acknowledgments 
to,  11 

Madison,  James,  appointment  of 
Edwards  by,  94;  Cass  appoint- 
ed Governor  by,  126;  letter  of 
dismissal  from,  171;  letter  to, 
184 

Madison  (Wisconsin),  capital  lo- 
cated at,  149;  university  locat- 
ed at,  149 

Maiden,  Indian  supplies  sent  out 
from,  105 

Marietta,  founding  of,  22,  49; 
early  government  of,  49-50;  ar- 
rival of  St.  Glair  at,  50;  sit- 
tings of  court  at,  67 

Maryland,  Edwards  born  in,  94; 
laws  from,  122 

Mason,  George,  162 

Mason,  John  T.,  appointment  of, 
as  Secretary,  141;  declination 
of,  141 

Mason,  Stevens  T.,  appointment 
of,  as  Secretary,  141 ;  executive 
duties  assumed  by,  141;  cause 
of  Michigan  defended  by,  142; 
election  of,  as  Governor,  142 ; 
services  of,  to  Territory,  142- 
143 


Massachusetts,  laws  from,  59 

Maxwell  Code,  58 

McCarty,  Dwight  G.,  5;  author's 
preface  by,  7 

Michigan,  evolution  of,  7;  reason 
for  retarded  development  of, 
19;  admission  of,  187 

Michigan  Territory  of,  Iowa's 
political  inheritances  from,  5; 
study  of  administration  in,  9; 
establishment  of,  92,  118; 
French  influence  in,  118 ; 
change  of  political  allegiance 
in,  118;  isolation  of,  119; 
boundaries  of,  119;  character 
of  government  of,  119;  Hull 
appointed  Governor  of,  120; 
compilation  of  laws  in,  120- 
122 ;  destitution  in,  122 ;  relief 
of  distress  in,  122-123, 128;  con- 
fusion in  land  claims  in,  124, 
130;  Indian  troubles  in,  124, 
132-134;  end  of  Hull's  admin- 
istration in,  125;  British  con- 
trol of,  125;  condition  of,  dur- 
ing War  of  1812,  126,  127-128; 
need  for  strong  executive  in, 
126;  Cass  appointed  Governor 
of,  126;  renewed  confidence  in, 
128-129;  local  government  in, 
restored,  129;  democratic  ten- 
dencies in,  129-130;  false  re- 
port concerning,  131;  explora- 
tion of,  132 ;  internal  improve- 
ments in,  132,  140;  trouble 
with  English  in,  134-136;  sec- 
ond stage  of  government  estab- 
lished in,  136;  modification  of 
powers  of  Governor  in,  137- 
138;  extension  of  suffrage  in, 


202 


INDEX 


138;  first  legislature  in,  138; 
laws  of,  138-139;  modification 
of  local  government  in,  139 ;  in- 
crease in  population  of,  140; 
Americanization  of,  140,  143; 
influence  of  Cass  in,  140,  143; 
Mason  appointed  Secretary  of, 
141;  persons  appointed  Gov- 
ernor of,  141;  western  country 
attached  to,  141;  administra- 
tion of  Mason  in,  141-143 ;  dis- 
pute over  boundary  of,  142, 
144;  experience  of  people  dur- 
ing period  of,  143;  separate 
government  in  western  part  of, 
144;  reference  to,  145;  coun- 
try west  of  Lake  Michigan  at- 
tached to,  187 

Middle  States,  immigration  from, 
22;  influence  of,  in  Northwest, 
53,  54 

Militia,  importance  of,  107;  or- 
ganization of,  in  Wisconsin, 
148 

Militia  officers,  plan  for  election 
of,  99-100 

Mineral  Point  (Wisconsin),  gov- 
ernment inaugurated  at,  145 

Minnesota,  retarded  development 
of,  159 

Mississippi,  early  activities  of 
French  in,  16 

Mississippi  Eiver,  15,  92,  94,  149; 
chain  of  forts  connecting  St. 
Lawrence  and,  16;  territory 
east  of,  ceded  to  England,  17; 
territory  west  of,  ceded  to 
Spain,  17;  fixing  of,  as  western 
boundary  of  United  States,  18 ; 
control  of  mouth  of,  by  Span- 


ish, 19,  61;  French  posts  on, 
60;  country  west  of,  under  In- 
diana, 85;  country  west  of,  at- 
tached to  Michigan,  141-142; 
removal  of  obstructions  in, 
147;  means  of  communication 
from  Lake  Michigan  to,  148 

Mississippi  Valley,  15;  key  to, 
gained  by  English,  17 

Missouri,  country  north  of,  at- 
tached to  Michigan,  141-142; 
dispute  over  boundary  of,  149 

Missouri,  Territory  of,  5 

Monroe,  James,  letter  to,  125,  184 

Montgomery  County  (Maryland), 
Edwards  born  in,  94 

NATIONAL  government,  influence 
of,  in  Old  Northwest,  22;  con- 
trol of  Territorial  government 
by,  36;  failure  of,  to  support 
St.  Glair,  64,  65 ;  awakening  of, 
to  dangers  in  West,  65 ;  neglect 
of  West  by,  107;  slowness  and 
indifference  of,  114-115 

Nelson  County  (Kentucky),  95 

New  England,  immigration  from, 
22;  immigration  society  in,  31; 
Marietta  founded  by  emigrants 
from,  49;  town-meeting  ten- 
dency of,  53-54;  influence  of 
people  from,  in  Illinois,  110- 
111 

New  Jersey,  laws  from,  59 

New  Orleans,  cession  of,  by 
France  to  Spain,  17 

New  Pilgrims,  Marietta  founded 
by,  22 

New  York,  laws  from,  59,  79; 
reference  to,  122;  interference 


INDEX 


203 


with  St.  Clair 's  plans  by,   169 
North  America,  France  eliminat 
ed  from,  17;  dominating  power 
in,  17 

Northwest  Territory,  Iowa 's  polit- 
ical inheritances  from,  5;  im- 
portance of  study  of  govern- 
ment of,  7;  study  of  adminis- 
tration in,  9;  trouble  and  war- 
fare in,  20;  slavery  in,  pro- 
hibited, 32;  St.  Clair  elected 
Governor  of,  48;  early  methods 
of  preserving  peace  and  order 
in,  49;  arrival  of  St.  Clair  in, 
50;  establishment  of  govern- 
ment  in,  50;  first  county  in, 
50;  first  laws  in,  51;  establish- 
ment of  local  government  in, 
50,  53 ;  judicial  system  in,  52, 
53;  effectiveness  of  judicial 
system  in,  53;  influence  of 
southern  and  middle  States  in, 
53-54 ;  inharmonious  elements 
in,  54;  manner  of  enacting 
laws  in,  57-59;  sources  of  laws 
of,  59;  differences  between 
branches  of  government  in,  59; 
conflicting  interests  in,  59; 
needs  of  settlers  in,  60;  efforts 
of  St.  Clair  to  relieve  distress 
in,  60-61;  foreigners  in,  61; 
unfriendliness  of  Spaniards,  to, 
61-62;  difficulties  in,  caused  by 
English,  62;  difficulties  in  set- 
tling land  claims  in,  62-63 ;  at- 
titude of  neighboring  States  to- 
ward, 63;  troubles  with  In- 
dians in,  63-65;  peace  restored 
in,  65;  difficulty  of  convening 
court  in,  66;  modification  of 


judicial  system  of,  67;  codifica- 
tion of  laws  of,  67-69;  begin- 
ning of  equity  procedure  in, 
68;  second  stage  of  govern- 
ment established  in,  69-70; 
trouble  between  Governor  and 
legislature  in,  70-72;  polities 
of  people  of,  72 ;  question  of 
statehood  in,  72;  change  of 
seat  of  government  of,  73 ;  con- 
stitutional convention  in,  73; 
St.  Clair  dismissed  from  gov- 
ernorship of,  73 ;  services  of  St. 
Clair  to,  73-74;  end  of  history 
of,  74;  division  of,  75,  94;  ref- 
erence to,  76,  116,  138;  Harri- 
son aa  Secretary  of,  77;  Har- 
rison as  Delegate  from,  77 ;  lawg 
of,  adopted  in  Indiana,  78-80; 
difficulty  in  use  of  code  of,  80 ; 
local  government  of,  adopted  in 
Indiana,  81 

OFFICERS,  local,  appointment  of, 
50,  53;  duties  of,  50;  powers 
of,  53;  desire  of  people  to 
elect,  100 

Officers,  Territorial,  provisions  of 
Ordinance  relative  to,  33-35 

Ohio,  evolution  of,  7;  reasons  for 
rapid  development  of,  19;  ad- 
mission of,  74;  Constitution  of, 
74;  desire  for  admission  of, 
75;  fortunate  position  of,  118- 
119;  dispute  over  boundary  of, 
142,  143,  144 

Ohio  Company,  organization  and 
composition  of,  31;  petition  of, 
to  Congress,  31,  41 

Ohio  River,  country  northwest  of, 


204 


INDEX 


15;  effect  of  acquisition  of 
country  northwest  of,  18;  man- 
ner of  settlement  of  country 
south  of,  21;  effect  of  different 
tendencies  on  different  sides  of, 
21;  Marietta  founded  on  banks 
of,  49;  reference  to,  75,  94; 
settlements  on,  92,  168;  devel- 
opment of  country  along,  119 
Old  Northwest,  Territories  of,  5; 
peculiar  position  of,  in  Amer- 
ican history,  7;  transformation 
of,  7;  early  conditions  in,  9; 
physiographic  unity  of,  15; 
boundaries  of,  15;  importance 
of  waterways  in,  15;  effect  of 
warring  of  nationalties  upon, 
18-20;  Kevolutionary  War  in, 
19-20;  manner  of  development 
of,  21 ;  manner  of  settlement 
of,  21;  effect  of  different  ten- 
dencies upon,  21;  first  settlers 
in,  21;  infusion  of  new  immi- 
gration in,  22;  influence  of 
National  government  in,  22; 
growth  of  democracy  in,  22, 
23;  effect  of  frontier  condi- 
tions in,  22-23;  elements  in 
growth  of,  23;  government  es- 
tablished in,  by  Virginia,  24; 
workings  of  Territorial  govern- 
ments in,  46-47;  Jacob  Burnet 
a  pioneer  of,  48;  compromise 
in  local  government  in,  54;  in- 
fluences at  work  in,  59;  first 
Territorial  legislature  in,  70; 
border  warfare  in,  105;  con- 
quest of,  by  Americans,  118; 
reference  to,  130,  150,  154 


Ordinance  of  1787,  adoption  of, 
32,  48;  title  of,  32;  author- 
ship of,  32 ;  general  provisions 
of,  32-35;  character  of  gov- 
ernment provided  by,  35,  39; 
denial  of  constitutional  priv- 
ileges by,  35-36;  benefits  con- 
ferred by,  36-38;  elements 
combined  in,  37;  provision  of, 
for  admission  of  new  States, 
37-38;  unique  feature  of,  38; 
permanent  character  of,  38 ; 
adaptation  of,  to  provisions  of 
Constitution,  38 ;  precedents 
for,  41;  harmony  of  North  and 
South  in  passing,  41;  wisdom 
of  provisions  of,  42 ;  provisions 
of,  relative  to  Governor,  42-45; 
framework  provided  by,  50; 
provision  of,  relative  to  Terri- 
torial laws,  57,  58 ;  no  provision 
in,  for  repeal  of  laws,  66 ; 
course  of  Common  Law  guar- 
anteed by,  69;  reference  to,  76, 
94,  111,  119,  136,  144;  modifi- 
cation of,  114;  amendments  to, 
137 

Ottawas,  council  of  Edwards 
with,  106 

PARIS,  Treaty  of,  terms  of,  17 

Parsons,  Samuel  Holden,  letter 
to  St.  Clair  from,  55;  reference 
to,  167 

Pennsylvania,  settlers  from,  22; 
John  Todd  born  in,  26;  local 
government  of,  copied,  54 ;  laws 
from,  59,  79;  reference  to,  122 

Peoria  Lake,  expedition  to,  103- 
104 


INDEX 


205 


Philadelphia,  constitutional  con- 
vention at,  31-32 

Pilgrims,  landing  of,  16 

Plains  of  Abraham,  English  vic- 
tory on,  17,  118 

Polk,  James  K.,  accession  of,  to 
presidency,  154;  Dodge  re-ap- 
pointed by,  154 

Pope,  John,  178 

Pope,  Nathaniel,  appointment  of, 
as  Secretary,  97;  executive 
functions  exercised  by,  97 

Porter,  George  B.,  death  of,  186 

Posey,  Thomas,  appointment  of, 
as  Governor,  89;  reference  to, 
90 

Pottawattamies,  chief  of,  103, 
106;  council  of  Edwards  with, 
106 

Prairie  du  Eocher,  trial  at,  166 

Preemption,  right  of,  granted, 
110,  131;  right  of,  urged  by 
Dodge,  147 

President  of  the  United  States, 
Territorial  officers  appointed 
by,  38;  Councilors  selected  by, 
70;  appointive  power  of,  cur- 
tailed, 88;  memorial  to,  102 

Proclamation  of  1763,  provisions 
of,  17,  18;  futility  of,  18 

Property,  provisions  of  Ordinance 
relative  to  descent  and  transfer 
of,  32 

Prophet,  The,  Indians  aroused  by, 
103,  105,  106 

Public  lands,  difficulties  in  dispo- 
sition of,  27;  difficulties  of  St. 
Clair  in  settling  claims  to,  62- 
63 ;  act  relative  to  sale  of,  77- 
78;  difficulties  of  Harrison  in 


settling  claims  to,  83,  84; 
troubles  relative  to,  in  Illinois, 
109-110;  difficulties  concerning, 
in  Michigan,  124,  130;  new 
policy  relative  to,  130;  ex- 
tinguishment of  Indian  title  to, 
132 ;  recommendations  of 
Dodge  concerning,  147 

QUARTER  Sessions,  jurisdiction  of, 
52;  composition  of,  52;  duty 
of  justices  of,  53 

RAISIN  River,  settlers  from,  127 

Randolph  County,  (Illinois),  es- 
tablishment of,  97;  address  by 
citizens  of,  98;  petition  of 
people  of,  178 

Receivers  of  Public  Moneys,  ap- 
pointment of,  83;  duties  of, 
83;  work  of,  84-85 

Registers,  appointment  of,  83; 
duties  of,  83;  work  of,  84-85 

Representatives,  Territorial,  elec- 
tions of,  34,  70;  qualifications 
of,  34,  111;  term  of,  34;  mem- 
bers of  Council  nominated  by, 
34;  legislative  functions  of, 
34-35;  people  given  right  to 
elect,  112 

Revolutionary  War,  7;  English 
settlements  at  time  of,  16; 
measures  foreshadowing,  17, 
18;  western  phase  of,  18,  19, 
20 ;  St.  Clair  in,  48 

Robertson,  James,  letter  to,   173 

Rock  River,  improvement  of  nav- 
igation of,  148 

Roosevelt,  Theodore,  21 

Russell,  Colonel,  troops  of,  108 


206 


INDEX 


ST.  CLAIR,  Arthur,  appointment 
of,  as  Governor,  48;  birth  and 
early  life  of,  48;  character  of, 
48;  estimate  of,  48-49;  prep- 
aration of,  to  take  up  duties, 
49;  arrival  of,  at  Marietta,  49; 
welcome  to,  49;  Washington 
County  established  by,  50;  ap- 
pointments by,  50 ;  objections 
of,  to  militia  law,  51 ;  laws 
passed  by  Judges  and,  51,  53, 
67-69;  new  counties  established 
by,  53;  system  of  local  govern- 
ment framed  by,  54;  difficul- 
ties confronting,  54;  opposi- 
tion of  Judges  to,  54;  law  ve- 
toed by,  55;  controversy  be- 
tween Judges  and,  55-56;  com- 
mon sense  of,  56;  unfriendli- 
ness of  Symmes  to,  56;  letter 
from  Symmes  to,  56;  resigna- 
tion of,  demanded,  56;  fair- 
ness of,  56-57;  acquiescence  of, 
in  manner  of  enacting  laws, 
57;  views  of,  adopted  by  Con- 
gress, 58 ;  influence  of,  in 
choosing  laws,  59;  untactful- 
ness  of,  59;  difficulties  con- 
fronting, 60-64;  efforts  of,  to 
relieve  distress,  60-61 ;  laws  and 
notices  translated  by,  61;  ef- 
forts of,  to  adjust  land  claims, 
63;  secret  instructions  to,  rel- 
ative to  Indian  affairs,  64; 
dealings  of,  with  Indians,  64; 
inadequacy  of  resources  of,  64; 
inability  of,  to  appreciate  west- 
ern methods,  64;  failure  of 
campaigns  of,  64;  defeat  of, 
by  Indians,  64;  cause  of  defeat 


of,  64;  effect  of  defeat  of,  64; 
lack  of  precedents  for  guid- 
ance of,  66;  recommendation 
of,  to  Congress,  66;  opposition 
of,  to  change  in  provisions  for 
judiciary,  67;  election  of  Rep- 
resentatives called  by,  70;  new 
element  of  opposition  to,  70; 
acts  of  legislature  disapproved 
by,  70-71;  free  use  of  veto 
power  by,  71;  unpopularity  of, 
71;  bitter  relations  of,  with 
legislature,  71 ;  faithfulness  of, 
to  his  duty,  71-72;  unfortunate 
attitude  of,  72 ;  autocratic  ten- 
dencies of,  72;  final  split  be- 
tween legislature  and,  72;  op- 
position  of,  to  movement  for 
statehood,  72;  insults  to,  72- 
73 ;  seat  of  government  re- 
moved to  Cincinnati  by,  73; 
desire  of,  to  address  conven- 
tion, 73;  rebuff  to,  by  con- 
vention, 73;  undignified  speech 
by,  73;  removal  of  from  gov- 
ernorship, 73 ;  unfortunate  end- 
ing of  public  career  of,  73 ; 
services  of,  to  country,  73; 
honesty  of,  73-74;  last  years 
of,  74;  death  of,  74;  success 
of  Territorial  government  due 
to,  74;  service  of  Harrison  un- 
der, 77;  resemblance  of  Harri- 
son to,  77;  reference  to,  78,  91, 
95,  112,  115,  137,  177;  con- 
trast between  Harrison  and, 
81;  comparison  of  Edwards 
with,  97;  exoneration  of,  by 
Congress,  169;  reasons  for  de- 


INDEX 


207 


feat  of,  170;  letter  of  dismissal 
to,  171 

St.  Clair  County  (Illinois),  es- 
tablishment of,  97;  militia  com- 
pany in,  101;  mass  meeting  of 
citizens  of,  102 

St.  Clair  County  (Northwest  Ter- 
ritory), establishment  of,  53 

St.  Lawrence  River,  chain  of 
forts  connecting  Mississippi 
and,  16;  reference  to,  119 

St.  Louis,  96 

Salt  Works,  supervision  of,  115- 
116 

Sargent,  Winthrop,  list  of  set- 
tlers prepared  by,  161 

Scott,  Governor,  failure  of,  to 
send  troops,  108 

Secretary,  Territorial,  appoint- 
ment of,  33 ;  term  of,  33 ;  qual- 
ifications of,  33 ;  change  in 
manner  of  appointment  of,  38; 
added  powers  of,  38 ;  salary  of, 
165 

Settlement,  manner  of,  21-22; 
cheap  land  an  incentive  to,  22 

Settlers,  desire  of,  for  strong 
government,  41 ;  desire  to  pro- 
tect, 41;  methods  of,  in  pre- 
serving order,  49;  needs  of, 
60;  number  of,  in  Northwest 
Territory,  60;  location  of,  60; 
efforts  of  St.  Clair  to  relieve, 
60-61;  hostility  of  Indians  to, 
63-64 ;  politics  of,  72 ;  difficulty 
in  settling  land  claims  of,  83- 
85;  means  of  protection  for, 
102-103 ;  uncertainties  of,  as 
to  land  policy,  109-110;  right 
of  preemption  for,  110,  131; 


character  of,  in  Illinois,  111; 
condition  of,  in  Michigan,  127, 
128 

Shambaugh,  Benj.  F.,  editor's 
introduction  by,  5;  acknowl- 
edgments to,  10 

Shawnees,  leader  of,  103,  105, 
106 

Shelby,  Isaac,  failure  of,  to  send 
troops,  108 

Slavery,  prohibition  of,  in  Ordi- 
nance, 32,  85;  attitude  toward, 
in  Indiana  Territory,  85;  at- 
titude of  Harrison  toward,  86; 
change  of  sentiment  relative  to, 
86 

Soldiers,  number  of,  in  Illinois 
country,  107 

South,  Old  Northwest  settled  by 
people  from,  21 

Southern  States,  influence  of,  in 
Northwest,  53,  54;  laws  from, 
79;  people  from,  in  Illinois, 
110,  116 

Southwest,  manner  of  settlement 
of,  21;  settlers  from,  in  North- 
west, 49 

Spain,  Florida  ceded  to  England 
by,  17;  territory  ceded  to,  by 
France,  17 

Spaniards,  early  explorations  and 
settlements  of,  16 ;  intrigues  of, 
against  Americans,  19,  62;  In- 
dians aided  and  encouraged 
by,  20 

Speculators,  designs  of,  frustrat- 
ed, 71 

Springfield    (Illinois),  96 

Statehood,  preparation  for,  in 
West,  8;  provision  for,  as  in- 


208 


INDEX 


centive  to  progress,  37;  move- 
ment for,  opposed  by  St.  Glair, 
72;  triumph  of,  73;  question 
of,  in  Wisconsin,  154 

States,  admission  of,  provided  for 
by  Ordinance,  32,  37-38 

Suffrage,  extension  of  right  of, 
88,  112-113,  138 

Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs, 
96;  activities  of  Edwards  as, 
115;  Hull's  activities  as,  124; 
activities  of  Cass  as,  132-134 

Superintendent  of  the  United 
States  Saline,  96;  duties  of 
Edwards  as,  115-116 

Supreme  Court,  Territorial,  com- 
position of,  52;  jurisdiction  of, 
52;  difficulty  in  convening,  66; 
power  given  to  single  judges 
of,  67;  place  of  sittings  of,  67 

Symmes,  John  Cleves,  property 
owned  by,  56;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward St.  Clair,  56;  queer  prop- 
osition made  by,  167;  St. 
Clair 's  resignation  requested 
by,  167 

TALLMADGE,  Nathaniel  P.,  ap- 
pointment of,  as  Governor,  153 ; 
character  and  training  of,  153; 
administration  of,  153-154;  re- 
moval of,  154 

Territorial  government,  distinct- 
ive character  of,  8;  importance 
of  study  of,  8;  foundation  for, 
24;  first  stage  of,  32-33;  pro- 
visions for  second  stage  of,  33- 
35;  participation  of  people  in, 
35,  37;  control  of,  by  National 
government,  36;  advantages  of 


citizens  under,  36-38;  factors 
in  determining  character  of,  40- 
42;  reasons  for  centralization 
in,  42;  lack  of  precedents  for, 
66;  second  stage  of,  in  North- 
west Territory,  69-70;  fortu- 
nate beginning  of,  74 ;  character 
of,  in  Indiana,  76-77;  estab- 
lishment of,  in  Indiana,  77; 
desire  for  second  stage  of,  in 
Indiana,  86;  establishment  of 
second  stage  of,  in  Indiana,  87 ; 
reasons  for  delaying  second 
stage  of,  in  Illinois,  111-112; 
adoption  of  second  stage  of, 
in  Illinois,  113;  second  stage 
of,  voted  down  in  Michigan, 
130;  second  stage  of,  estab- 
lished in  Michigan,  136;  pol- 
icy of  altering,  138 

Tippecanoe,  effect  of  victory  of, 
105,  106,  124 

Todd,  John,  appointment  of,  as 
County  Lieutenant,  25 ;  instruc- 
tions to,  25;  early  life  of,  26; 
arrival  of,  at  Kaskaskia,  26; 
duties  of  office  assumed  by,  26 ; 
order  issued  by,  27;  difficulties 
confronting,  27;  efforts  of,  to 
carry  on  government,  27;  de- 
parture of,  from  Illinois  Coun- 
ty, 28;  unwarrantable  criticism 
of,  28 ;  apologetic  letter  to,  28 ; 
land  grants  by  successors  of, 
62 

Todd,  Thomas,  97 

Town-meeting,  absence  of,  in 
early  history  of  Northwest,  53- 
54;  establishment  of,  54 


INDEX 


209 


Townships,  organization  of,  53; 
officers  of,  53 ;  manner  of  es- 
tablishing, 137 

Treaty  of  Paris,  terms  of,  17 

Turner,  Frederick  J.,  acknowl- 
edgments to,  11 

Tyler,  John,  Dodge  removed  by, 
151 ;  Doty  appointed  by,  151 

UNITED  STATES,  acquisition  of 
Iowa  country  by,  5;  Mississippi 
Eiver  fixed  as  western  bound- 
ary of,  18;  government  for 
Old  Northwest  prescribed  by, 
21;  western  lands  ceded  to,  31; 
character  of  Territorial  Gov- 
ernors in,  46;  land  grants  by, 
83;  debt  of,  to  Cass,  140 

University  of  Wisconsin,  estab- 
lishment of,  149 

VAENUM,  James  M.,  letter  to  St. 
Clair  from,  55;  reference  to, 
167 

Vincennes,  French  settlers  at,  61; 
reference  to,  75,  108;  meeting 
of  Governor  and  Judges  at,  78 ; 
establishment  of  land  office  at, 
83 ;  settlements  at,  92 ;  soldiers 
at,  107;  number  of  Americans 
in,  160;  heads  of  families  in, 
161;  judges  elected  at,  162 

Virginia,  backwoodsmen  from,  in 
Old  Northwest,  21;  government 
for  western  country  provided 
by,  24;  neglect  of  Illinois 
County  by,  28,  29;  attitude  of 
French  settlers  toward,  29; 
western  lands  ceded  by,  31 ; 


laws  from,  59,  79;  reference  to, 
122 

WABASH  Eiver,  French  posts  on, 
60;  St.  Clair 's  defeat  on,  65; 
settlements  on,  92;  reference 
to,  94 

War  of  1812,  20,  125;  Harrison's 
campaigns  in,  89-90;  prepara- 
tions for,  105-106;  declaration 
of,  107;  events  of,  107-108; 
events  in  Illinois  country  be- 
fore, 109;  effect  of,  on  immi- 
gration, 109 

War  Department,  neglect  of  West 
by,  107 

Washburne,  E.  B.,  statement  by, 
95 

Washington,  George,  St.  Clair  a 
friend  of,  48 

Washington  County  (Northwest 
Territory),  establishment  of, 
50;  purpose  of  establishment 
of,  50-51 

Wayne,  Anthony,  Indians  sub- 
dued by,  65;  service  of  Har- 
rison under,  77 

Wayne  County   (Indiana),  80 

West,  evolution  of  States  in,  8; 
slowness  of  English  to  take 
possession  of,  16;  claims  of 
French  to,  16;  tendency  of  col- 
onists to  look  toward,  18;  ser- 
vices of  George  Eogers  Clark 
in  saving,  18;  claims  of  col- 
onies to  land  in,  18 ;  petitions 
from,  to  Congress,  31;  need  for 
strong  government  in,  31,  36, 
40;  lawless  conditions  in,  40; 
settlement  of,  by  people  from 


210 


INDEX 


eastern  States,  41;  early  acts 
of  Congress  relative  to,  41; 
desire  to  encourage  immigra- 
tion to,  41 ;  popularity  of  Har- 
rison in,  78;  failure  to  appre- 
ciate situation  in,  115 

Western  lands,  cession  of,  31,  36 

Western  posts,  failure  of  British 
to  relinquish,  20 

Westward  Movement,  preparation 
of  way  for,  18;  disturbances 
during  period  of,  20;  country 
in  line  of,  118 

Winston,  Eichard,  28 ;  appoint- 
ment of,  162 

Wisconsin,  evolution  of,  7 ;  admis- 
sion of,  8,  9,  154;  reasons  for 
retarded  development  of,  19 

Wisconsin,  Territory  of,  Iowa's 
political  inheritances  from,  5; 
study  of  administration  in,  9 ; 
establishment  of,  144;  char- 
acter of  government  of,  144- 
145 ;  Dodge  appointed  Governor 
of,  145;  counties  in,  146; 
trouble  over  apportionment  in, 
146;  organization  of  govern- 
ment in,  147;  internal  improve- 


ments in,  147-148;  contest  over 
seat  of  government  of,  148- 
149;  dispute  over  boundary  of, 
149 ;  educational  institutions 
in,  149;  changes  of  county 
seats  in,  150;  influence  of 
Dodge  in,  151;  Doty  appointed 
Governor  of,  151;  administra- 
tion of  Doty  in,  151-153;  Tall- 
madge  appointed  Governor  of, 
153 ;  Dodge  re-appointed  Gov- 
ernor of,  154;  increase  in  pop- 
ulation in,  154;  question  of 
statehood  in,  154;  features  of 
history  of,  154-155 

Wisconsin,  University  of,  estab- 
lishment of,  149 

Wisconsin  River,  canal  between 
Fox  Eiver  and,  148 

Wolfe,  General  James,  victory  of, 
on  Plains  of  Abraham,  17,  118 

Woodward,  Augustus  B.,  charac- 
ter of,  120 ;  work  of,  iu  compil- 
ing laws,  120-122;  clashes  be- 
tween Hull  and,  123 ;  action  of, 
in  aiding  British,  125;  letter 
from,  to  Monroe,  125 


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